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Prize  Gardening 


now     TO     DERIVE 

PROFIT 

PLEASURE 
HEALTH 

FROM  THE  GARDEN 

Actual  Experience 

of  the 

Successful  Prize  Winners 

in  the 

American 

Agriculturist 

Garden  Contest 

FULLY   ILLUSTRATED   FROM 

ORIGINAL  PHOTOGRAPHS 

AND  DRAWINGS 


G^^  BURNAP    FISKE 

Author  of 
Par*.  II.  The  New  Rhubarb  Culture. 
Formerly  agricultural  editor  of  the  Massachu- 
setts   Ploui;hman   and    assistant    agricultural 
editor  of  the  American  Agriculturist  Weeklies. 


New  York 

ORANGE  JUDD  COMPANY 

1901 


COPYRIGHTED    I9OI 

by 

ORANGE  JUDD  COMPANY. 

All  Rights  Reserved. 


CONTENTS 


Introduction 


CHAPTER  1 

STORY  OF  THE   CONTEST 


History,    rules,    entries,   reports   and  results. 
CHAPTER    n 

THE  GRAND  PRIZE  GARDEN 

Mr.  Morse's  story— Sketch  of  J.  H.  Morse— His  methods  for 
special  crops — Prize  garden  queries. 

CHAPTER  HI 

GARDENING   FOR   PROFIT 

Good  living  from  a  garden — Five  acres  enough — A  cucumber 
experiment — Money  in  berries — Mr.  Wright's  vineyard — 
Money  in  a  Minnesota  garden — A  twenty-acre  garden. 

CHAPTER  IV 

GOOD  FARM  GARDENS 

A  luxuriant  Iowa  garden — Mr.  Campbell's  story — The  Wood- 
ruff prize  garden — A  business-like  gardener —  A  busy 
farmer's  garden. 

CHAPTER  V 

THE   HOME  ACRE 

A  quality  garden — In  the  semi-arid  district — A  luxuriant  home 
garden — A  farm  garden  patch — Small  gardens. 

CHAPTER  VI 

ON    HIGH-PRICED    LAND 

A    city    man's    garden — Good    seeds    and    fertilizers — Careful 
planning — Winner  of  the  first  prize — Mr.  Higley's  way. 

f'm»    it-  v>  «_/r'^ 


Vi  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  VII. 

SUCCESS   IN   TOWN   OR   CITY 

A  profitable  small  garden — Movable  hotbeds — One  of  the  best 
suburban  gardens — Small  town  gardens — A  squash  crop 
under  difficulty. 

CHAPTER  VIII 

FERTILIZER  GARDENS 

The  prize  fertilizer  garden — Mr.  Flagg's  garden  journal — 
Prize  vegetables — A  prime  garden  on  chemicals — Fer- 
tilizer lavishly  applied. 

CHAPTER  IX 

PRIZE  GARDENING   FOR   WOMEN 

A  smart  woman's  success — A  woman's  pastime — A  good 
home  garden  —  Mrs.  Ludwig's  success — Mrs.  Bale's 
diary — A  profitable  small  garden — A  model  account — A 
nice  income — Successful  gardening — A  productive  south- 
ern garden — Perseverance  under  difficulty. 

CHAPTER  X 

YOUNG    HORTICULTURISTS 

Nature's  school — One  of  the  smaller  gardens — An  enterpris- 
ing youth — A  boy  gardener. 

CHAPTER  XI 

GARDEN   IRRIGATION 

Water  saved  the  garden — In  the  lower  San  Gabriel  valley — In 
the  mountain  section — Taught  by  practice — A  Kansas 
garden — Three  acres  in  Colorado. 

CHAPTER  XII 

IRRIGATION    IN    THE   EAST 

Water,  soluble  fertilizers  and  irrigation — Watering  a  city  lot — 
Another  Jersey  water  garden. 


CONTENTS  VU 

CHAPTER  XIII 

EXPERIMENTAL  GARDENING 

Thorough  methods— A  melon  garden— Testing  the  soil— Some 
novel  features — An  interesting  experiment — A  beginner's 
success — Selling  produce  to  Indians — High  feeding  for 
plants— Saving  seeds — A  born  horticulturist. 

CHAPTER  XIV 

METHODS   UNDER  GLASS 

A  cheap  forcing  house — The  hotbed — A  quick  way — Mr.  Kin- 
ney's methods — Management  of  hotbeds — Useful  details — 
Forcing  cucumbers  and  tomatoes — Forcing  lettuce — Coal 
the  best  heat — Small  frames. 

CHAPTER  XV 

SUCCESS    WITH    SPECIALTIES 

The  potato  field  —  Onions — Tomato  culture — Melons — One 
woman's  way — Peas — Early  cucumbers — Celery — Large, 
well  filled  corn — Spring  lettuce — Covering  spinai  - — Egg 
plant — Ginseng. 

CHAPTER  XVI 

PRIZE  FLOWERS   AND  FRUIT 

Growing  sweet  peas — Culture  of  begonias — Dahlias — The 
water  lily  pond — Fruit  in  prize  gardens. 

CHAPTER  XVII 

LESSONS   FROM    THE    WINNERS 

Cost  and  value  of  the  garden — Profits  of  small  market  gar- 
dens— How  to  make  the  garden  p^y — What  should  a 
garden  contain — Growing  and  showing  vegetables — Early 
vegetables — Some  good  vegetables  not  generally  grown — A 
practical  farm  garden — Marketing. 

CHAPTER  XVIII 

A    GARDEN    SYMPOSIUM 

Replies  from  prize  winners — Best  size  for  garden — Causes  of 
failure — Best   vegetables   and   flowers — Best   implements — 


Vlll  CONTENTS 


Insect  killers — Second  crops — Fighting  weeds — Prfze  gar- 
den experience. 


CHAPTER  XIX 

PRIZE  PICKINGS 

Garden  bookkeeping — Working  the  soil — Cultivation  and  weed- 
ing— Special  implements — Fighting  insects — Garden  de- 
vices— Fertilizers — Solid  comfort — The  family  garden. 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


Sweet  Peas  and  '"Rosebuds"  in  the  Grand  Prize  Garden — 

Frontispiece 

Mr.  and  :\Irs.  J.  E.  Morse 6 

Plowing  in  the  Grand  Prize  Garden 8 

Garden    Plots   and   Home    Grounds   of   the    Grand    Prize 

Winner     ..........  ii 

Plots  in  the  Prize  Garden 13 

Some  Produce  of  the  Grand  Prize  Garden         ...  15 

Manure  Spread  After  a  March  Snowstorm         ...  24 

The  Early  Hotbed 28 

Mr.  Wright's  Five-Acre  ^larket  Garden     ....  30 

Cucumber  Vines  Dusted  with  Lime,  and  Box  Frames      .  32 

A  Thrifty  Market  Garden 38 

Working  a  New  York  Truck  Patch 42 

A  York  State  Truck  Patch  in  July      .  .45 

Garden  of  G.  W.  F.  Campbell 53 

Onions   for   Exhibit 54 

Some  of  Mr.   Widmer's  Vegetables            •         •        •        •  59 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Dimock 64 

L.  E.  Dimock's  Garden  Ready  for  Seed      ....  66 

Mr.  Dimock's  Garden  in  Midseason 68 

Vegetable  Exhibit  from  Mr.  Dimock's  Garden  ...  70 

A.  T.  Giauque's  Good  Garden ■.        -.  72 

A  Garden  in  Long  Rows 73 

A  Garden  Site  in  the  Minnesota  Forest      ....  75 

Mr.  Tye's  Currant  Bushes  and  Late  Turnips      ...  76 

Some  of  Mr.  Tye's  Crops  and  Tools 77 

A  Well-Arranged  House  Lot 79 

How  Mr.  Hauck's  Garden  Is  Arranged  and  Planted         .  82 

Some  July  Prize  Vegetables 83 

Garden  Arrangement  of  a  City  Back  Yard  ....  85 

Celery  Boarded  Ready  for  Bleaching 91 


X  LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS 

Grapevine  with  Bags  on  Fruit 92 

Typical  Landscape  of  Northern  New  Jersey      ...  93 

F.  J.  Bell's  Garden  Plot 96 

Residence  of  F.  J.  Bell 99 

Residence  of  R.  L.  Porter loi 

Edward  R.  Flagg 104 

On  Culture  and  Chemicals 109 

Farm  and  Garden  of  J.  G.  Lyman 113 

Mrs.  W.  D.  Goss 115 

Mrs.  Dole's  Garden  in  August 122 

Mrs.  L.  A.  Ludwig    .            127 

Garden   of   Amelia   C.    Guild   in   July.     Camden    Mts.    in 

Background 133 

Working  Force  of  A.  C.  Guild's  Garden,  with  July  Produce  135 

A  New  York  Woman's  Garden 137 

Mrs.  Calkins  Picking  Berries  for  Supper  ....  139 

Home  of  j\Irs.  J.  W.  Bryan 141 

George  Osborne's  Home  Market 144 

Peppers  Six  Inches  Long  Grown  by  Oscar  Roberts    .        .  146 

A  Large  Exhibit  by  a  Small  Gardener        ....  149 

Walter  R.  Palmer 150 

The  Site  of  an  Irrigated  Garden 153 

A  Nebraska  Garden  Spot  Before  Irrigation         .         .         .  154 

Method  of  Irrigating  Mr.  Brickey's  Garden        .        .        .  156 

Irrigating  Egg  Plants 161 

Mr.  Matteson's  Ditch  and  Cross  Furrows  ....  164 

Plot  of  S.  W.  Damon's  Watered  Garden  ....  166 

Fruit  Trees  in  the  Garden 170 

Mr.  Reynolds's  Garden  Plot 171 

Irrigation  Plan  of  J.  B.  Reynolds's  Garden        .        .        .  172 

Inside  Plant  for  Garden  Irrigation 177 

Celery,  Denim  Hose  Between  Rows 179 

Irrigating  Celery 181 

Ready  for  Business 187 

A  Woman's  Luxuriant  Garden 190 

Mrs.  Alice  C.  Strader 191 

A  Farmer's  Greenhouse 196 

Hotbeds  and  Cold  Frames 203 

Mr.  G.  J.  Townsend,  His  Workshop  and  Cold  Frames      .  205 

Harvesting  Onions 215 


LIST  OF   ILLUSTRATIONS  XI 

A  New  England  Onion  Crop 216 

Prize    Onions 217 

Picking  Tomatoes 219 

Mr.  Edge's  Tomato  Support 222 

Flower  Garden  of  R.  N.  Lewis,  Brigntside,  New  York      .  238 

Peach  Trees  in  an  Arkansas  Garden 243 

Prolific   Currants 244 

Ready  for  the  Spring  Campaign 270 

November  Pickings  from  a  Woman's  Garden  .         .         .  2^2 

Homestead  of  a  New  York  State  Winner  ....  274 

A  Convenient  Garden  Summary 279 

Using  a  Horse  Hoe  as  a  Hand  Cultivator  in  a  Parsnip  Bed  284 

A  Homemade  Marker 286 

Protection  from  Cutworms 286 

A  Minnesota  Gardener's  Device 287 

A  Handy  Weeder 288 

Stone  Boat  and  Vine  Support 290 

P. ant  Boxes 292 

Picking  Peas  for  Dinner 296 

Shady  Lawn  of  a  Prosperous  Garden  .....  298 

Finis        ...........  300 

L.  C.  and  Fred  P.  Wright 301 

^Fr.  and  Mrs.  A.  T.  Giauque 302 

Brainard  S.  Higley .  303 


INTRODUCTION 


The  collected  and  condensed  experience  of  the  win- 
ners in  the  Garden  Contest  is  believed  to  be  of  unique 
value  because  of  the  skill  and  prominence  of  the  narra- 
tors and  the  completeness  of  description  encouraged 
by  the  nature  of  the  contest.  Full  details  of  crop 
methods  are  almost  proverbially  hard  to  get  from 
successful  gardeners,  who  may  often  regard  such 
information  as  a  kind  of  trade  secreet.  Here,  on  the 
contrary,  the  hope  of  winning  prominence  and  a  large 
money  reward  has  brought  out  such  a  wealth  of  fact 
and  detail  that  the  most  rigorous  condensation  and 
selection  was  needed,  and  only  the  most  striking  and 
essential  parts  could  be  quoted  or  even  summarized, 
although  it  is  believed  that  all  points  of  practical  and 
permanent  value  have  been  retained. 

The  greater  part  of  Chapters  I,  II  and  XVII,  and 
other  descriptive  articles,  were  originally  prepared  for 
the  American  Agriculturist  weeklies  by  Mr.  E.  C. 
Powell,  one  of  the  judges  of  the  contest. 

The  accounts  as  originally  submitted  have  been 
amplified  and  brought  to  date  when  necessary,  by 
further  correspondence  with  prize  winners. 

There  were  five  thousand  entries,  about  five  hun- 
dred complete  accounts  and  one  hundred  prize  winners. 
From  the  leading  accounts,  the  aim  is  to  present  a  total 
of  selected  experience  with  gardens  of  all  sizes,  from 
one  thousand  square  feet  to  many  acres  in  extent,  in 
different  sections  of  the  continent  and  under  numerous 


INTRODUCTION  XIV 

variations  of  soil,  climate,  altitude  and  method  of 
arranjT^cment. 

Althouf^h  nearly  all  the  prize  winners  were  garden 
experts,  yet  some  excelled  in  special  directions  and 
naturally  emphasized  their  specialties  in  the  accounts, 
thus  giving  far  more  helpful  treatment  of  the  various 
topics  than  could  be  accorded  by  any  one  expert. 
Clearness,  completeness  and  accuracy  were  the  essen- 
tial requirements,  and  contestants  were  encouraged  to 
relate  all  important  details  and  to  tell  the  whole  story, 
some  keeping  a  daily  memorandum  as  a  basis  for  the 
description  and  bookkeeping  record.  Many  submitted 
charts,  photographs  and  drawings,  making  their  narra- 
tive still  clearer.  The  intelligence  and  progressiveness 
of  the  growers  is  apparent  at  first  glance.  Each  man 
has  definite  ideas  of  his  own,  and  these  ideas  he  is  test- 
ing by  successful  garden  practice.  The  methods  dififer : 
many  men ;  many  minds.  Each  has  studied  out  his  owm 
problem  in  his  own  way.  The  very  difference  in  the 
conditions  and  methods  constitutes  the  particular  value 
of  the  accounts,  since  readers  everywhere  will  find  that 
some  at  least  of  the  descriptions  are  particularly 
adapted  to  their  needs. 

Most  important  of  all,  the  accounts  are  every  one 
from  actual  experience ;  not  a  line  but  is  based  on  the 
work  of  the  season,  and  the  result  is  a  mine  and 
treasure-house  of  garden  practice.  In  effect  every 
writer  had  his  notebook  strapped  to  his  hoe-handle, 
and  the  stories  savor  of  the  fresh-turned  soil  and  the 
laden  produce  baskets. 


CHAPTER   I 

STORY    OF    THE    CONTEST 

Prizes  aggregating  two  thousand  five  hundred 
dollars  were  offered  for  the  best  garden  accounts  for 
the  season  of  1899.  This  contest  was  inaugurated  by 
the  American  Agriculturist  weeklies,  Orange  Judd 
Farmer  of  Chicago  for  the  west,  American  Agricul- 
turst  of  New  York  for  the  middle  and  southern  states, 
The  New  England  Homestead  of  Springfield,  Massa- 
chusetts, for  the  east. 

These  prizes  were  offered  not  for  the  story  of 
biggest  profits  or  for  fancy  results,  but,  in  the  language 
of  the  rules,  "  to  the  records  and  reports  which  show 
most  clearly  and  accurately  the  methods  pursued,  and 
the  receipts  and  expenses  of  the  garden,  irrespective 
of  whether  it  shows  a  profit  or  a  loss." 

The  Orange  Judd  Company,  publishers  of  the  great 
weeklies  before  mentioned,  contributed  two  hundred 
and  fifty  dollars  in  cash  and  defrayed  all  expenses  of 
the  contest.  Other  prizes  in  cash  and  goods  were  the 
donations  of  various  dealers  and  producers  of  agricul- 
tural supplies.  Some  were  conditioned  on  the  use  of 
the  donors'  seeds,  fertilizers  or  implements,  which  fact 
will  account  for  their  occasional  mention  in  narratives 
of  contestants. 

The  rules  allowed  a  garden  of  any  size  above  one 
thousand  square  feet,  and  plots  varied  from  the  lowest 
limit  up  to  twenty  acres.  There  were  few,  however, 
above  four  or  five  acres.  The  garden  might  be  in  one 
piece  or  divided  in  several  plots;  most  of  them  were 
in  one  field.     Contestants  were  required  to  state  exact 

nOFERT)   LmAH) 

HCStKU  CelUst 


2  PRIZE     GARDENING 

area  and  to  list  and  value  all  tools  and  supplies,  all 
accounts  to  be  kept  in  a  record  book  of  convenient  size. 
The  less  important  details  were  left  to  individual 
judgment. 

Every  one  of  the  five  hundred  contestants  whose 
reports  were  received  had  his  or  her  own  method  of 
keeping  the  record  and  making  out  the  report.  Some 
were  brief,  giving  only  the  barest  summary  of  the  work 
done,  methods  employed,  expenses,  receipts  and  prod- 
ucts, while  others  were  very  elaborate  and  covered  two 
or  three  hundred  pages  of  manuscript  or  typewritten 
copy  and  were  fully  illustrated  with  photographs, 
sketches  and  drawings.  Some  were  ornately  bound. 
Nearly  all  grasped  the  idea  to  give  a  report  that  would 
bring  out  the  actual  product  and  returns  from  the 
garden,  receipts  and  expenses  and  methods  pursued. 
The  ages  of  contestants  ranged  between  ten  and  ninety 
years.  Some  of  the  winners  were  women,  and  their 
experience  suggests  anew  the  idea  of  the  lighter  out- 
door pursuits  for  the  weaker  sex.  Some  of  them  did 
all  the  work,  light  or  heavy.  Others  secured  help  from 
the  men  folk  for  such  work  as  plowing  and  carting. 
Increased  health  and  strength  were  among  the  price- 
less benefits  secured,  although  women's  gardens  did 
not  compare  unfavorably  for  general  good  results  with 
those  worked  by  man  power. 

Close  to  five  thousand  people  in  all  parts  of  the 
country  gave  notice  of  their  intention  to  compete,  and 
five  hundred  and  fifteen  actually  sent  in  reports  of  the 
season's  work.  Many  who  did  not  officially  enter  the 
contest  were  encouraged  to  keep  better  gardens.  Prob- 
ably at  least  five  thousand  well-kept  gardens  in  nearly 
as  many  towns  were  due  to  this  contest — each  one  an 
object  lesson  to  many  other  people.  A  good  garden 
in  a  neighborhood  is  like  seed  sown  upon  good  ground 
— it  wakes  up  the  neighbors  to  follow  suit  and  try  a 


STORY     OF     THE     CONTEST  3 

garden  for  themselves.  Thus  the  garden  contest  has 
had  a  far-reaching  influence  and  the  good  effect  will 
continue  in  ever-widening  circles  for  years  to  come. 

The  number  of  entries  and  number  of  reports 
received  are  shown  in  the  annexed  table.  The  unprec- 
edented drouth  of  1899  was  so  widespread  and  cut 
short  so  many  gardens  that  many  owners  became  dis- 
couraged and  failed  to  continue  the  record  throughout 
the  season  and  to  send  in  their  reports.  The  percent- 
age of  completed  returns  was,  however,  very  large  for 
a  contest  of  this  kind,  and  testifies  to  an  extraordinary 
interest. 


Reports      No. 
received  entVd 

Maine    11  log 

New    Hampshire....  13  131 

Vermont   17  165 

Massachusetts    ji  y2^ 

Rhode    Island 2  19 

Connecticut    39  387 

New   York 81  819 

New  Jersey 11  127 

Pennsylvania     17  174 

Delaware    2  19 

Maryland    3  36 

Virginia    2  28 

North    Carolina i  9 

South  Carolina i  14 

Georgia     3  27 

Florida    2  22 

Ohio     13  148 

West    Virginia i  11 

Kentucky    2  27 

Tennessee 7  86 

Mississippi 4  42 

Alabama    i  8 

Michigan    ii  106 

Indiana    6  51 

Wisconsin 21  198 

Illinois     25  245 

Minnesota     22,  221 

Iowa     17  163 


Reports     No. 
received  ent'r'd 

Missouri    9  85 

Arkansas 2  21 

Louisiana    2  14 

North    Dakota i  5 

South  Dakota i  12 

Nebraska    19  172 

Kansas    5  43 

Oklahoma 2  18 

Indian    Territory....  i  4 

Texas 5  48 

Montana   i  5 

Wyoming    i  7 

Colorado     2t,  226 

New  Mexico i  9 

Idaho   2  18 

Utah     2  10 

Arizona     i  8 

Washington    6  58 

Oregon 4  41 

Nevada    ,  i  3 

California   7  62 

Ontario    2  21 

Manitoba    3  34 

British    Columbia...  3  2,7 

Nova    Scotia 2  15 

Total 515  4997 


4  PRIZE     GARDENING 

One  novel  feature  of  the  contest  was  the  emphasis 
placed  upon  the  story  of  the  work ;  not  upon  the  yield 
or  profit  of  the  garden.  The  management  wisely  pre- 
ferred to  secure  practical  and  helpful  accounts  clearly 
and  attractively  presented,  rather  than  to  encourage 
stories  of  great  returns,  with  the  accompanying  possi- 
bility of  exaggeration,  and  results  which  at  best  are 
not  more  helpful  to  the  average  grower  than  are  the 
monstrous  and  pampered  specimens  of  fruit  and  vege- 
tables so  often  awarded  premiums  at  the  agricultural 
fairs ;  the  trouble  and  expense  in  such  cases  are  out 
of  the  question  for  the  practical  gardener.  The 
methods  described  in  the  prize  accounts  are  for  the 
most  part  those  which  anybody  can  follow  with  profit 
under  similar  conditions. 

As  might  be  expected,  a  majority  of  the  best 
accounts  were  evidently  by  the  best  gardeners ;  men 
and  women  of  good  general  ability,  having  a  thorough 
understanding  of  the  best  methods  and  being  able 
therefore  to  present  them  clearly.  Their  work,  both 
on  paper  and  on  soil,  showed  to  good  advantage. 
Some,  evidently  highly  skilled  and  intelligent  garden- 
ers, were  unfortunate  in  various  ways,  but  in  most 
cases  good  accounts,  good  methods  and  good  gardens 
went  together.  Thus,  although  the  prize  accounts,  if 
sufficiently  good,  might  have  described  gardens  which 
failed  to  pay,  the  fact  was  otherwise,  as  a  general  rule, 
and  despite  a  drouthy  season^  most  of  the  winners 
obtained  large  and  valuable  crops. 


CHAPTER  II 

THE    GRAND    PRIZE    GARDEN 

The  garden  of  J.  E.  Morse,  who  won  the  grand 
prize,  is  located  within  the  city  Hmits  of  Detroit,  Mich- 
igan.    The  ground  has  been  devoted  to  nursery  pur- 
poses for  thirty  years,  and  is  so  occupied  that  separate 
plots  were  used  for  the  garden.   Plot  Xo.  i  has  a  south- 
ern slope  with  a  light  sandy  soil.     A  heavy  application 
of  manure  was  made  in  1898  and  five  tons  were  applied 
March   14.     It   was  plowed  April    18  and  cultivated 
with  twelve-tooth  cultivator  and  pulverizer  attachment, 
lolled  and  cultivated  again  and  planted  to  crops  as 
shown  by  diagram  on  a  later  page.     It  was  cultivated 
April  28  with  the  double  wheel  hoe,  again  on  May  13 
and  frequently  thereafter  throughout  the  season.    The 
tomato  plants,  which  had  previously  been  sown  in  the 
hotbed,  were  transplanted  May  4, 'seventeen  of  them 
being  set  direct  in  the  ground  and  the  rest  potted  and 
planted  out  three  weeks  later.     The  potted  plants  did 
much  better  and  received  no  check  at  the  final  trans- 
planting to  open  ground.     Gradus  and  Duke  of  Albany 
peas  rotted  badly  and  were  replanted  May  5.     This 
shows  the  necessity  of  using  the  round,  smooth  varie- 
ties for  early  sowing. 

Lettuce  had  been  sown  in  the  hotbed  April  i, 
transplanted  to  cold  frames  the  i8th  and  every  alter- 
nate row  thinned  and  planted  in  open  ground  May  4, 
to  be  followed  by  lima  beans  when  the  crop  was  har- 
vested. Burpee's  All  Head  Early  cabbage  was  planted 
out  May  6.     Salt  was  used  to  keep  off  green  worms 


6  PRIZE     GARDENING 

and  was  of  assistance  in  heading  and  hardening  up 
the  cabbage.  The  first  heads  were  ready  for  use  July 
9.  Five  rows  of  Sheffield  sugar  corn  were  planted 
April  20  with  sprouted  seed.  This  insured  planting 
only  good  seed,  avoided  danger  of  rotting  and  hastened 
maturity  several  days,  so  that  the  first  picking  was 
made  July  9,  or  in  eighty-one  days,  and  continued  until 
August  19.  Some  of  the  potatoes  were  placed  in  a 
box  in  the  house  and  sprouted  and  all  were  planted  in 
the  ground  May  4.     The  sprouted  potatoes  made  a 


MR.  AND  MRS.  J.  E.   MORSE 


decided  gain  and  were  ready  for  market  from  a  week 
to  ten  days  earlier  and  brought  fifteen  to  twenty  cents 
more  per  bushel. 

Plot  No.  2  has  a  westerly  slope  with  soil  varying 
from  light  sand  to  heavy  sandy  loam.  Four  tons  of 
manure  were  applied,  and  on  May  10  it  was  plowed 
and  worked  in  the  same  manner  as  the  other  plot  and 
again  cultivated  in  sections  as  the  various  crops  were 


THE     GRAND     PRIZE     GARDEN  7 

planted.  Two  rows  of  bush  beans  were  planted  the 
next  day.  The  wheel  hoe  with  plows  set  together  was 
run,  making  a  shallow  drill.  The  beans  were  dropped 
three  inches  apart,  the  plows  were  then  reversed  and 
set  apart  and  run  astride  the  row,  turning  the  soil  back 
into  the  trench.  The  wheel  hoe  and  cultivator  was 
used  Alay  22  and  29  and  June  12.  For  the  rust  the 
vines  were  sprayed  with  saltpeter  and  water  in  the 
proportion  of  one  ounce  to  one  gallon  and  with  very 
satisfactory  results.  Early  beets  had  been  sown  in  the 
hotbed  April  18  and  were  transplanted  to  open  ground 
April  15,  the  tops  being  clipped  at  the  same  time. 
There  was  no  need  of  thinning  and  the  results  of  trans- 
planting w^re  satisfactory,  as  they  were  ready  for  the 
table  and  bunching  July  i. 

In  transplanting  the  tomatoes  from  the  hotbed, 
a  mixture  of  soil  and  Jadoo  fiber  was  used  in  the  pots 
and  a  fine  root  growth  obtained.  In  setting  out,  holes 
were  made  with  a  spade  three  by  three  feet  apart  for 
the  Fordhook  Fancy  and  five  by  six  feet  for  Pon- 
derosa.  The  plants  were  removed  from  the  pots,  set 
an  inch  or  two  below^  the  surface  and  a  dipper  of  water 
was  poured  around  each  before  drawing  up  the  fresh 
earth.  Plants  thus  treated  did  not  wilt  any  in  the 
hottest  sun  and  continued  growing  without  a  check. 
The  following  brief  summary  tells  all  about  the  tomato 
crop  and  shows  the  method  which  was  used  in  the 
report  with  several  other  of  the  more  important  crops : 

RECEIPTS 

July— 28  qts   at   5c $1.40 

Aug— 21    bu    at   55c    11.55 

Sent — 60  bu  at  31c 18.60 

Oct— 4  bu  at  75c 3.00 

$34-55 


THE     GRAND     PRIZE     GARDEN  9 

EXPENSES 

Rent   of  land $  .50 

Manure     ^ 

Plowing  and  fitting 1.20 

Plants    750 

betung  and  resetting 1.05 

10  lbs  nitrate  of  soda  at  3  i-2c 35 

5  lbs  Jadoo  fiber  at  3c 15 

Cultivation  and  hoeing 75 

Picking     3-^ 

Marketnig    3-30 

$19.20 

Balance    profit $i5-35 

Hubbard  squashes  were  grown  exclusively  in 
Plot  No.  3,  which  is  a  sandy  knoll  with  a  southern 
slope.  The  preparation  of  the  ground  was  similar  to 
that  of  the  other  plots.  On  June  lo  it  was  planted. 
The  hills  were  made  six  by  six  feet  by  mixing  a  shovel- 
ful of  manure  with  the  soil  and  covering  with  earth 
one  inch  deep. 

Late  cabbage  was  planted  on  Plot  No.  4  (not 
shown),  which  was  four  by  ten  rods,  with  an  easterly 
slope  and  heavy  sandy  soil.  In  previous  years  serious 
trouble  with  club  root  had  been  experienced  and  a  test 
with  litmus  paper  showed  the  soil  to  be  very  sour.  Air 
slaked  lime,  at  the  rate  of  one  ton  per  acre,  was  sown 
broadcast  and  harrowed  in  after  applying  four  tons 
of  manure.  Only  five  and  five-tenths  per  cent  of  the 
plants  showed  club  root,  while  the  previous  crop  grown 
in  1896  was  entirely  abandoned  on  account  of  this 
trouble. 

Late  in  the  fall  ?ome  rhubarb  roots  were  dug,  left 
on  the  ground  to  freeze  and  planted  in  a  bed  made  on 
the  cellar  floor  January  18.  They  were  screened  ofif 
with  an  old  carpet  curtain  and  a  common  lamp  and 
lantern  with  darkened  chimneys  used  to  give  the 
required  heat.     The  bed  was  ready  to  cut  February 


10  PRIZE     GARDENING 

25  and  remained  in  bearing-  some  time.  From  ten 
roots  ten  and  one-third  dozen  bunches  (thirty-six  stalks 
to  the  bunch)  were  cut,  which  were  worth  fifty  cents 
per  dozen. 

Burpee's  seeds,  in  mostly  five  and  ten-cent  packets, 
were  used.  A  peck  of  Burpee's  Extra  Early  potatoes 
worth  one  dollar,  one  hundred  and  twenty  cabbage 
plants  at  sixty  cents,  five  hundred  tomato  plants  at 
seven  dollars  and  fifty  cents  and  ten  rhubarb  roots  at 
one  dollar,  with  the  rest  of  the  seeds,  footed  up  to  thir- 
teen dollars  and  eighty-five  cents.  The  accompanying 
summaries  explain  themselves  and  show  that  this  gar- 
den of  three-fourths  of  an  acre  returned  a  net  profit  of 
ninety-two  dollars  and  forty-six  cents. 

The  Prize  Winner  and  His  Family. — Mr.  Morse 
was  born  near  Pontiac,  Michigan,  of  parentage  well 
tinctured  with  Revolutionary  blood.  He  was  the 
youngest  of  a  family  of  three,  and  when  eleven  years 
old  began  to  study  the  problem  of  self-support.  At 
the  age  of  seventeen  he  went  to  the  front  as  a  private, 
and  was  mustered  out  seven  months  later  at  the  close 
of  the  Civil  war,  leaving  his  regiment  as  acting  orderly 
sergeant.  Returning  home,  rapidly  changing  circum- 
stances soon  drew  him  into  music  teaching  and  gospel 
work,  which  extended  over  considerable  portions  of 
Michigan,  Ohio,  Pennsylvania  and  New  York,  during 
which  time  he  marrieda  woman  whose  girlhood  was 
passed  upon  a  farm.  They  have  two  little  girls, 
Gladys  and  Helen,  aged  six  and  four  years.  Subse- 
quently he  took  up  the  management  of  a  newspaper, 
which  broke  him  down  in  health  and  pocket.  His 
early  training  in  farming  and  fruit  growing,  supple- 
mented by  a  careful  study  of  methods,  now  came  in 
play,  and  in  the  spring  of  1896  he  took  charge  of  an 
old  nursery,  which  oflFered  a  home,  with  fruit,  flowers, 
etc.     He  says: 


12  PRIZE     GARDENING 

"We  were  empty-handed  on  taking-  possession  of 
the  place;  our  entire  assets  consisted  of  a  Hmited 
amount  of  household  furniture,  one  hoe,  one  shovel, 
two  forks,  a  buggy  and  horse  with  a  chattel  mortgage 
blanket  upon  it,  and  two  thousand  dollars  invested  in 
baby  girl  securities.  With  no  tools  but  our  hands  the 
work  was  laborious.  Our  seed  was  purchased  on 
short  time  and  our  first  cash  investment  was  a 
year's  subscription  to  an  agricultural  paper.  Crops 
soon  gladdened  our  eyes.  A  Jersey  cow  was  soon 
purchased,  then  pig-s  and  chickens,  which  also 
proved  a  source  of  revenue.  Fruit,  flowers  and  vege- 
tables were  carefully  prepared  for  market  and  sold 
at  fancy  prices  as  soon  as  matured.  Within  five 
months  the  last  payment  was  made  on  the  cow  and 
the  chattel  mortgage,  and  a  goodly  supply  of  fruit, 
vegetables  and  potatoes  stored  away  for  winter's  use. 
During  these  years  a  willing  and  helpful  wife  has  ren- 
dered valuable  aid  in  all  ways.  Tribute  has  been  laid 
on  every  help  within  our  reach,  on  agricultural  papers, 
of  which  we  have  four  weeklies  and  several  monthlies, 
books,  bulletins,  attendance  upon  farmers'  institutes, 
etc.  Our  work  has  been  the  breeding  up  and  improve- 
ment of  different  fruits,  flowers  and  vegetables.  Quite 
a  good  deal  of  writing  has  been  done  for  agricultural 
papers  -by  both  of  us.  Our  dark  forcing  experiments 
are  confined  to  the  winter  months  and  are  opening  up 
new  fields  of  profit." 

In  regard  to  the  tools  used,  Mr.  Morse  says: 
"  Aside  from  the  plowing  and  rolling  of  the  ground, 
no  implements  outside  the  Planet  Jr  family  were  used. 
Even  the  hand  hoe  was  almost  unthought  of  and  very 
little  needed.  The  double  wheel  hoe  with  all  attach- 
ments seems  capable  of  more  varied  uses  than  any 
other  implement  with  which  I  am  acquainted.  The 
multitude  of  uses  for  which  so  many  of  the  implements 


THE     GRAND    PRIZE     GARDEN 


13 


can  be  utilized  is  their  chief  recommendation.  With 
the  small  plots  we  were  compelled  to  use,  horse  culti- 
vation was  expensive,  both  as  to  time  and  plants 
destroyed ;  and  working-  by  hand  would  have  eaten  the 
crops  before  harvested." 


POTATOES. 


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PLOT  NO.  I  IN  DETAIL 


I'LOTS  NOS.  2  AND  3  IN  DETAIL 


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PLOTS  IN  THE  PRIZE  GARDEN 


14  PRIZE     GARDENING 


TOOLS   USED   IN   PRIZE  GARDEN 

Plow    $6.50 

Planet  Jr  wheel   hoe 6.00 

Planet  Jr  hill  and  drill  seeder 7.00 

i2-tooth    cultivator 8.00 

Roller 3.50 

Wheelbarrow    i.oo 

Spade    75 

Shovel     60 

Hoe   40 

Garden    line 15 

Garden    rake 35 

Sprayer    5.00 

Horse   and    wagon 75oo 

Hotbeds    10.40 

350  flower  pots 7.00 

$131.65 

FERTILIZER    USED 

14  tons  barnyard  manure $7.00 

1-4  ton  lime 1.45 

12  lbs  nitrate  of  soda 36 

I   lb  saltpeter 20 

10  lbs  Jadoo  fiber 30 

I  lb  sulphur 10 

I  lb  tobacco  dust 03 

12  gals  bordeaux  mixture 18 

$9.62 

PROCEEDS   FROM   GARDEN 

Mar— 10   1-3  doz   rhubarb $5.17 

Apr — 32  bchs   radishes 64 

May — 20  lbs  lettuce 2.00 

30  doz   tomato   plants 6.00 

8   doz   cabbage   plants 1.20 

120  cabbage  plants 60 

3  bu   lettuce 1.50 

June — 500   tomato   plants 7.50 

6  bu  lettuce 2.25 

4  lbs  lettuce 20 

1-2  bu  peas 40 

July — I    bu    peas 80 

5  doz  carrots 25 

T]   doz   cabbages 3.85 

60  doz  sweet  corn 4.80 

2  1-4  bu  green  beans 1.80 

7  bu  potatoes 4.20 


1 6  PRIZE     GARDENING 


July — I  1-2  bu  beets $    .45 

28  qts  tomatoes 1.40 

4000  sweet  peas 4.00 

Aug — 42  1-2  bu  sweet  corn 2.97 

9  bu  potatoes 4.05 

21  1-2  bu  tomatoes 12.35 

I  bu  beets 30 

8  3-4  doz  melons 4. 15 

6500    sweet   peas 6.50 

30   bdls    cornstalks 75 

Sept — 3  1-8  bu  lima  beans 4.05 

60    bu    tomatoes 18.60 

6  bu  melons 2.40 

12  bdls  cornstalks 30 

Oct — 3   1-2  doz  squashes 3.50 

4  bu  tomatoes 3.00 

Nov — 1590  cabbages 43-72 

6   1-2  bu  parsnips    (on  hand) 2.25 

8  bu  beets  (on  hand) 2.10 

10  bu  roots,  sea  kale 2.00 

41    1-2  bu  mangels    (on  hand) 6.22 

I    bu   onions    (on   hand) 50 

5  bu  carrots   (on  hand) 1.25 

$169.97 

EXPENSE   OF   GARDEN 

Rent  of  land $3.60 

Fertilizer    9.62 

Labor    40.77 

Seeds    4.75 

Plants   8. 10 

Roots    1. 00 

Interest  on  capital  invested  at  6  per  cent 7.90 

Wear  of  garden  tools  at  i  1-2  per  cent 1.77 

$77-51 

Proceeds   from   garden $169.97 

Expense  of  garden 77-51 

Profit    $92.46 

LABOR 

Jan — 4  hours  male  labor $  .60 

Mar — 20  hours  male  labor 3.00 

Apr — 12  hours  male   labor 1.80 

22  1-2  hours  female  labor 1.80 

May — 2  1-2  hours  female  labor 20 

28   1-2   hours   male   labor 4.28 


THE     GRAND     PRIZE     GARDEN  I7 

June — 61  1-2  hours  male  labor $  9. 11 

I   1-2  hours  female  labor 12 

July — 8  hours  female  labor 64 

26   1-2  hours  male  labor 4.18 

Aug — 5  hours  male  labor 75 

3  hours  female  labor 24 

Nov — 5   hours   male  labor 1.05 

$-2777 

July — Marketing  $  2.00 

Aug — Marketing  3.00 

Sept — Marketing  3.00 

Nov — Marketing  5.00 

$40.77 
Male  labor,    162   1-2  hours,  female  labor,  n  1-2  hours. 


Raising  and  Setting  Tomato  Plants. — Seed  of 
Fordhook's  Fancy  and  Ponderosa  was  sown  in  the 
hotbed  April  i  and  transplanted  after  the  second  set 
of  leaves  appeared.  Nitrate  of  soda  was  applied,  one 
ounce  to  the  sash.  The  plants  were  left  in  the  hotbed 
until  May  3.  Potting"  soil  was  prepared  by  mixini^ 
three-fourths  leaf  mold  and  one-fourth  well-rotted 
manure.  Six-inch  pots,  with  broken  pieces  of  crocks 
placed  in  the  bottom  for  drainage,  were  filled  one- 
fourth  full  of  soil.  As  the  plants  were  put  in  the  pots 
a  small  handful  of  Jadoo  fiber  was  placed  under  and 
around  the  roots.  Sufficient  soil  to  hold  the  plants  in 
place  was  put  in  and  well  firmed  around  the  roots.  The 
pots  were  then  filled  with  the  soil  and  placed  in  a  tub 
partially  filled  with  water  which  had  been  exposed  to 
the  sun,  and  after  soaking  were  transferred  to  the  cold 
frame.  With  occasional  watering  and  uncovering, 
when  weather  permitted,  they  remained  until  May  26, 
when  they  were  set  in  the  open  ground. 

In  planting  out,  a  line  was  drawn  and  holes  were 
made  with  a  spade  three  feet  each  way  for  Fordhook's 
Fancy  and  five  by   six   feet  for   Ponderosa.     A  tub 


l8  PRIZE     GARDENING 

partially  filled  with  water  was  set  near  the  cold  frame. 
The  plants  were  set  in  and  when  thoroughly  soaked 
were  wheeled  out  and  placed  along  the  rows.  In 
planting  out,  the  pot  was  turned  bottom  upward  onto 
the  left  hand  and  the  contents  loosened  by  inserting  a 
small,  smooth  stick  in  the  hole  at  the  bottom  of  the  pot 
and  pushing  against  the  broken  pieces  of  crocks. 
When  loosened  the  pot  was  removed,  and  with  the 
right  hand  holding  all  intact,  the  plant  was  set  in  the 
hole,  which  was  deep  enough  to  set  the  roots  an  inch 
or  two  lower  than  in  the  pot,  enabling  it  to  better  with- 
stand the  whipping  of  the  wind.  A  dipper  of  water 
was  poured  around  the  roots  and  the  whole  filled  with 
loose  earth. 

While  this  seems  a  laborious  and  an  expensive 
method,  returns  more  than  justified  the  extra  labor  and 
expense.  The  Jadoo  fiber,  when  properly  fined  by 
working  through  a  coarse  screen,  is  an  ideal  prepara- 
tion for  potting  purposes,  and  produces  a  wonderful 
root  growth,  which  is  the  object  sought  in  the  early 
life  of  all  plants. 

Extra  Early  Potatoes. — In  order  to  get  some  early 
potatoes  we  sprouted  the  seed  about  the  middle  of 
April.  The  potatoes  were  cut  one  eye  to  the  piece  and 
placed  in  a  tin  pan,  where  sulphur  was  sprinkled  over 
them  and  thoroughly  mixed  with  the  seed.  A  box 
five  inches  deep  by  twenty  inches  square  was  filled  with 
sand  one  and  one-half  inches  deep,  in  which  the  pieces 
were  set.  Sufficient  sand  to  nearly  cover  them  was 
sifted  in.  The  contents  were  sprinkled  with  tepid 
water  and  placed  in  a  nearly  darkened  room  with  a 
temperature  of  about  sixty-five  degrees.  They  were 
given  an  occasional  sprinkling  and  left  undisturbed  for 
three  weeks.  At  this  time  the  pieces  had  sprouts  vary- 
ing from  just  starting  to  three  or  four  inches  long,  and 


THE     GRAND     PRIZE     GARDEN  I9 

care  in  removing  from  the  box  to  the  furrow  was  nec- 
essary to  leave  the  sprouts  undisturbed. 

The  results  of  sprouting  the  seed  were  clearly 
marked  the  entire  season.  In  coming  up,  growth, 
maturity  and  harvesting  they  were  fully  a  week  to  ten 
days  in  advance  of  those  unsprouted,  making  a  (Hf- 
ference  of  fifteen  to  twenty  cents  per  bushel  in  price 
at  time  of  marjieting.  Sprouting  the  seed  is  entirely 
practicable  for  larger  areas,  as  the  extra  labor  is  a 
mere  trifle  compared  with  the  difference  in  market 
values.  The  results  of  the  sulphur  as  to  scab  preven- 
tion were  not  all  that  could  be  desired,  although  to 
some  extent  beneficial.  The  experiment  seems  to  show 
a  marked  benefit  from  the  sulphur  in  prolonging  the 
vitality  of  the  seed,  the  pieces  ni  many  instances 
remaining  intact  the  entire  season  through.  The  wire- 
worms,  also,  caused  very  little  damage,  while  on  the 
same  plot  only  a  few  feet  distant  they  were  very 
destructive  to  early  cabbage  plants. 

Prize  Garden  Queries. — The  published  account  of 
Mr.  Morse's  grand  prize  garden  excited  general  inter- 
est and  numerous  inquiries  were  received.  Replies  by 
Mr.  Morse  were  as  follows: 

Potatoes  :  Bovee  and  Burpee's  Extra  Early  for 
white,  and  Acme  and  Early  Six  Weeks  for  flesh  color 
are  our  favorites  for  early.  For  very  early  planting, 
while  the  ground  is  yet  cold,  do  not  plant  deeper  than 
three  inches ;  for  later  planting,  four  to  six  inches  is 
not  too  deep. 

The  extra  labor  of  sprouting  is  really  very  little, 
and  the  plan  is  entirely  practicable,  even  for  quite  large 
areas.  An  inch  or  two  of  sand  is  placed  in  shallow 
boxes  of  any  size  convenient.  As  the  pieces  are  cut, 
they  are  set  in  the  sand,  close  together,  with  eyes  up. 
Sift  in  enough  sand  to  nearly  cover  the  pieces,  leaving 
them  sticking  up  through   the   sand.     Sprinkle  with 


20  PRIZE     GARDENING 

warm  water  and  set  in  a  partially  darkened  room  or 
cellar  where  the  temperature  will  be  about  sixty-five 
degrees.  No  further  care  is  necessary  except  to 
sprinkle  should  they  become  too  dry.  This  work  may 
be  done  a  month  previous  to  planting,  with  the  advan- 
tage that  your  crop  is  growing  even  while  the  ground 
is  still  frozen  outside.  During  this  time  the  sprouts 
will  have  grown  two  to  six  or  eight  inches  in  length, 
and  will  require  careful  handling  in  planting  to  avoid 
breaking  off.  They  must  be  entirely  covered,  but  will 
be  out  of  the  ground  within  a  very  few  days.  By  this 
method  no  infertile  seed  is  planted  and  the  potatoes 
will  be  up  ahead  of  the  weeds.  The  advantage  of  ten 
days  or  two  weeks  in  the  early  markets  will  many  times 
repay  the  little  extra  labor. 

Sweet  Corn  :  To  sprout  the  seed,  take  shallow 
tin  or  sheet-iron  pans  or  anything  in  which  one  can 
give  bottom  heat  if  required.  Put  in  an  inch  or  so 
of  sand  and  thoroughly  moisten.  Over  this  spread  a 
cloth.  The  corn  is  then  spread  on  and  covered  with 
another  thickness  of  cloth.  Sprinkle  on  a  light  cover- 
ing of  moist  soil  and  set  in  a  warm  place.  Five  to 
eight  days  before  planting  will  be  sufficiently  early  to 
start  the  seed.  By  this  plan  no  poor  seed  will  be 
planted  and  the  seed  may  be  put  in  much  earlier  with- 
out the  danger  of  rotting.  The  corn  will  be  ready  for 
table  or  market  use  much  earlier  than  by  the  ordinary 
method  of  planting. 

Club  Root  :  Many  questions  from  widely  differ- 
ent sections  indicate  that  the  disease  is  more  general 
than  might  be  supposed,  and  a  brief  summary  is  all 
that  can  be  attempted  now.  The  disease  is  a  fungous 
growth.  Wet,  acid  soil  seems  to  be  its  natural  home, 
but  it  may  be  carried  or  spread  in  various  ways ;  as  by 
the  overflow  of  surface  water  or  tools  used  in 
the  cultivation  of  infected  ground.     The  only  reme- 


THE     GRAND     PRIZE     GARDEN  21 

dies  thus  far  known  are  the  Hberal  use  of  Hme,  avoid- 
ing the  use  of  tools  on  other  ground  that  have  been 
used  in  infected  ground  and  burning  or  boihng  all 
affected  roots.  Never  feed  any  diseased  roots  raw, 
as  the  germs  will  be  carried  in  the  manure  from  stock 
thus  fed. 


CHAPTER  III 

GARDENING    FOR    PROFIT 

The  best  paying  gardens  were  as  a  class  those 
whose  owners  made  them  a  specialty.  They  were 
depended  upon  for  a  living  or  as  an  important  source 
of  income,  and  received  the  gardener's  best  thought 
and  care.  They  were  not  allowed  to  wait  until  the 
rest  of  the  farm  had  been  planted  and  most  of  the 
manure  used  for  field  crops.  Neither  were  they  left 
to  the  care  of  the  women  folks,  already  over-busy.  In 
haying  time  the  owner  did  not  abandon  them  to  the 
mercy  of  bugs  and  weeds,  or  neglect  to  pick  and  sell 
the  produce  because  of  a  press  of  other  duties.  The 
gardener  for  profit  fertilized  and  cultivated  to  the  best 
of  his  knowledge.  He  worked  early  and  late,  placing 
the  garden  first  and  other  interests  afterward.  In 
many  instances  he  had  done  so  for  years  and  was  a 
market  gardener  by  profession.  Others  were  farmers 
who  made  a  specialty  of  their  garden  because  it  paid 
them.  The  representative  instances  described  show  a 
very  small  farm  may  be  made  to  afford  a  livelihood. 

A  Good  Living  from  a  Garden. — A  clear  profit  of 
six  hundred  and  ninety-four  dollars  and  one  cent  from 
five  acres  was  made  by  B.  S.  Rembaugh  of  Pettis 
county,  Missouri,  winner  of  S.  L.  Allen  &  Co.'s  special 
first  prize  of  one  hundred  dollars  for  the  most  profitable 
results  where  their  implements  were  used.  Mr.  Rem- 
baugh had  a  small  market  garden  on  a  plot  of  less  than 
hve  acres  on  which  to  make  a  living.  The  land  is 
naturally  poor  and  was  in  sod  two  years  ago.  Fer- 
tilizer could  not  be  purchased,  owing  to  lack  of  capital, 


GARDEN I XG    FOR    TROFIT  23 

but  sixty  loads  of  manure  were  obtained  last  year,  and 
this  scant  supply,  with  irrigation  and  elbow  grease, 
made  possible  a  fair  yield.  A  good  local  market  in  a 
neighboring  city  of  twenty  thousand  inhabitants  took 
most  of  the  produce  raised,  although  at  times  the  mar- 
ket was  glutted  and  much  had  to  be  thrown  away. 
Mr.  Rembaugh  truthfully  remarks :  ''  There  is  noth- 
ing like  thorough  cultivation  and  an  abundant  water 
supply  in  case  of  dry  weather  for  making  a  beautiful 
garden.  It  is  useless  to  garden  for  profit  unless  you 
have  a  large  supply  of  fertilizers  and  a  sufficiently 
large  market  to  take  your  produce." 

He  began  the  gardening  operations  late  in  Jan- 
uary by  sowing  tomato  seed  in  shallow  boxes  in  the 
house.  Early  in  March,  two  cold  frames  were  sown 
to  radish,  and  others  were  planted  March  25  with  rad- 
ish, beets  and  lettuce.  A  hotbed,  six  by  sixteen  feet, 
was  planted  to  cucumbers  April  22,  being  filled  with 
sods  cut  five  inches  square.  On  each  sod  five  seeds 
were  planted  and  covered  with  a  little  soil.  Some 
muskmelons  were  planted  in  the  same  manner. 

The  first  planting  in  the  open  ground  was  April 
15,  when  one  bushel  peas,  three  pounds  spinach,  five 
pounds  radish,  one  pound  onion,  one-half  pound  turnip 
and  one-half  pound  celery  seed  were  sown.  The  first 
tomato  plants  were  set  May  2  by  digging  a  hole  nine 
inches  deep  and  putting  in  the  bottom  a  shovelful  of 
mixed  soil  and  manure.  \\^ater  was  poured  in  the  hole 
before  setting  the  plants.  The  ground  for  cucumbers 
and  melons  was  laid  ofif  in  furrows  nine  inches  deep 
by  going  four  times  with  the  Planet  Jr  cultivator  with 
teeth  set  close  together.  A  shovelful  of  compost  was 
put  in  the  furrow  every  three  and  one-half  feet  and  on 
this  a  block  of  sod  from  the  hotbed  with  the  plants  was 
set.  The  melons  were  set  six  feet  each  way.  The 
manure  and  soil  from  a  mushroom  bed  was  well  mixed 


H  C.  Stat- 


Colhi* 


GARDENING    FOR    TROFIT  25 

and  spread  in  the  bottom  of  furrows  marked  out  for 
potatoes.  Rows  for  celery  were  laid  off  three  and 
one-half  feet  apart  and  six  inches  deep.  In  the  bottom 
was  put  a  good  dressing  of  composted  manure  before 
setting  the  plants,  which  were  set  six  inches  apart. 
The  celery  was  a  second  crop  after  early  vegetables, 
and  its  production  was  a  hard  fight,  owing  to  drouth. 
The  method  of  irrigating  was  to  turn  water  mto 
trenches  lietween  the  rows,  which  were  banked  across 
at  intervals  by  little  dams  of  earth,  thus  holding  back 
the  water  and  allowing  it  to  soak  into  the  rows.  The 
celery  crop  was  stored  in  trenches  fifteen  inches  wide, 
eighteen  inches  deep  and  two  hundred  and  seventy  feet 
long.  The  plants  were  dug,  the  earth  knocked  off  the 
roots,  rusty  outside  leaves  pulled  oft"  and  the  plants 
packed  closely  in  the  trench,  which  were  covered  with 
boards,  with  earth  over  all.  The  fifteen  thousand  stalks 
at  forty  cents  per  dozen  netted  five  hundred  dollars. 
Other  important  crops  were  salsify,  one  hundred  and 
twenty  dollars ;  tomatoes,  sixty-seven  bushels,  eighty- 
seven  dollars;  muskmelons,  three  thousand  one  hun- 
dred and  three,  one  hundred  and  three  dollars ;  radishes, 
fifty-seven  dollars:  cucumbers,  forty-four  dollars. 

Concludes  this  i)ruminent  contestant:  ''Long 
liours  and  plenty  of  luird  work :  endless  quantities  of 
well-rotted  horse  manure :  the  most  thorough  tillage  of 
the  soil;  first-class  seed  planted  with  good  judgment^ 
and  with  ample  moisture  one  cannot  fail  to  reap  a 
good  harvest." 

A  truly  American  career  is  that  of  ^Ir.  Rem- 
baugh;  winning  his  own  way,  making  and  losing 
money  with  great  facility  in  several  locations  and  occu- 
pations. Of  German-English  descent,  he  was  thrown 
upon  his  own  resources  after  eight  years  old;  made 
money  as  a  sutler  in  the  Federal  army  at  the  age  of 


26  PRIZE     GARDENING 

seventeen.  After  the  war  he  moved  from  Pennsyl- 
vania to  Missouri,  started  a  dairy  route,  married,  went 
to  CaHfornia  for  his  health,  managed  a  dairy  farm 
there,  returned  to  Missouri  and  built  a  flouring  mill, 
saved  about  fifteen  thousand  dollars  and  lost  heavily 
by  fire,  bought  a  larger  mill  and  did  a  large  business, 
made  seventy-five  thousand  dollars,  only  to  lose  every- 
thing through  a  bank  failure,  finally  starting  at  mar- 
ket gardening  with  very  slight  capital.  But  a  man 
who  can  make  four  and  one-third  acres  pay  him  clear 
profit  of  six  hundred  and  ninety-four  dollars  will  not 
long  be  hampered  for  lack  of  capital.  He  states  inci- 
dentally that  he  is  selling  from  two  hundred  to  three 
hundred  loaves  of  bread  per  day.  An  unmistakable 
hustler  is  Mr.  Rembaugh,  and  the  bread  item  suggests 
a  family  of  the  same  energetic  breed.  The  younger 
daughter,  it  is  stated,  sold  the  garden  produce  and  the 
elder  one  kept  the  accounts. 

The  story  of  the  garden  is  at  times  quite  dramatic, 
with  its  accounts  of  drouth  that  lasted  until  the  earth 
gaped  for  water ;  how  the  gardeners  fought  with  irri- 
gating trenches  and  a  watering  system  devised  for  the 
emergency,  and  how  at  last  the  situation  is  relieved 
and  the  crops  saved  by  sudden  and  copious  showers. 
There  were  lively  fights,  too,  with  insect  foes  and  mys- 
terious blights  that  carried  off  the  melon  vines,  and 
the  list  of  purchases  shows  the  kind  of  resistance 
made. 

And  Mr.  Rembaugh  worked!  Sometimes  after 
the  list  of  a  day's  operations  that  would  look  large  to 
an  easy-going  gardener,  the  comment  is  noted :  "  A 
poor  day's  work."  At  other  times  we  have  such  entries 
as  the  following :  "  Worked  fifteen  hours,  temperature 
ninety-two.  Very  tired."  This  is  not  the  leisurely 
way  in  which  many  persons  of  middle  age  pass  the 


GARDENING    FOR    PROFIT  2*^ 

season  of  hot  weather,  but  it  is  the  way  to  make  money 
in  gardening. 

The  bill  of  expense  itemizes  thirty-eight  dollars 
for  seeds,  two  dollars  and  twenty-five  cents  for  ma- 
nures, forty-seven  dollars  and  ten  cents  for  miscella- 
neous and  two  hundred  and  fifty-six  dollars  and  fifty- 
nine  cents  for  labor.  Total,  three  hundred  and  forty- 
five  dollars  and  thirteen  cents,  which  is  deducted  from 
sales  amounting  to  one  thousand  two  hundred  and 
thirty-nine  dollars  and  fourteen  cents.  The  small  pay- 
ment for  manure  is  because  most  of  it  was  obtained 
for  the  hauling,  while  the  cost  of  the  portion  bought 
was  only  from  ten  to  twenty-five  cents  per  load.  Labor 
was  charged  at  ten  cents  per  hour  for  men  and  five 
cents  for  women  and  boys.  Actual  cash  paid  for  out- 
side labor  was  eighty-seven  dollars. 

FIVE     ACRES    ENOUGH 

A  little  farm  well  tilled  will  produce  a  larger 
income  than  a  large  one  half  worked.  Five  acres 
devoted  to  rasing  vegetables  has  made  a  comfortable 
living  for  L.  C.  WVight  &  Son  of  Oswego  county.  New 
York,  one  of  the  leading  prize  winners.  They  were 
able  to  do  nearly  all  their  own  work  of  growing  and 
marketing  the  crops,  raised  much  of  their  own  seed 
from  selected  plants,  kept  some  hogs  and  hens  to  add 
somewhat  to  the  income  and  incidentally  produce 
most  of  the  manure  used,  so  that  they  paid  out  but  a 
very  small  portion  of  the  gross  receipts.  The  products 
were  marketed  at  wholesale  in  Oswego,  three  miles 
away,  and  the  delivery,  therefore,  was  quickly  done. 
Only  such  crops  as  were  in  good  demand  were  grown, 
but  enough  of  them  to  make  variety  and  a  constant 
supply  of  something  from  early  spring  until  late  fall. 


28 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


The  illustration  on  Page  30  shows  clearly  the 
arrangement  of  the  plot  and  the  crops  grown.  Con- 
siderable space  was  devoted  to  grapes,  strawberries, 
raspberries  and  asparagus,  for  which  there  was  a  good 
demand  at  a  fair  price.  The  small,  closely  set,  narrow 
teeth  were  used  almost  entirely  on  the  cultivation 
instead  of  the  two  and  one-half-inch  teeth  commonly 


THE  EARLY  HOTBEDS 


used.     The  methods  employed  in  growing  crops  will 
be  described  in  the  words  of  Mr.  Wright. 

Tomatoes. — Ground  had  been  plowed,  harrowed 
and  marked  out  with  shovel  plow  in  deep  furrows,  five 
feet  apart,  and  cross-marked  in  rows  four  feet,  until 
we  found  by  counting  up  hills  we  would  be  short  of 
ground.  So  we  cross-marked  the  balance  about  three 
and  one-half  feet.     With  hoes  we  pulled  the  soil  out 


GARDEXIXG     FOR    PROFIT  29 

of  the  furrows  where  they  crossed.  The  hills  were 
about  ei.q-ht  inches  deep  and  fourteen  inches  wide. 
Each  hill  received  a  manure  fork  full  of  well-rotted 
horse  manure.  This  was  covered  with  soil,  not  mixed 
with  it,  to  the  depth  of  six  inches. 

Our  plants  were  ready  to  set  June  2;  after  thor- 
oui^hly  watering-  them  so  the  soil  would  stick  to  the 
roots,  took  them  up  carefully,  about  fifty  at  a  time, 
placed  them  in  our  two-wheel  garden  cart  and  drew 
them  to  the  prepared  hills.  Placed  a  plant  on  each 
hill.  One  man  took  a  garden  hoe  with  extra  large 
blade  and  the  other  man  picked  up  the  plant.  The 
hoe  was  driven  into  the  hill  by  striking  with  edge  of 
the  blade  deep  enough  to  strike  the  manure.  The  soil 
was  held  up  with  the  hoe  while  the  plant  was  placed, 
top  facing  east,  with  roots  under  the  soil  and  into  the 
hill  so  that  the  soil  held  up  by  hoe  when  released 
would  cover  roots  and  stalk  of  plant  about  eight  inches. 
The  soil  held  up  by  hoe  was  then  released  and  firmed 
by  pressing  down  with  the  foot  on  soil  directly  over 
the  roots  of  plant.  ,  This  left  plant  when  set  lying 
down.  We  set  all  tomato  plants  this  way.  Never 
set  them  upright,  as  the  wind  is  apt  to  break  them  off. 
Although  the  plant  is  set  flat  down,  in  five  or  six  days 
it  will  turn  and  stand  up  straij^ht,  but  this  g^ives  the 
plant  time  to  toughen  up,  and  any  ordinary  wind  will 
not  break  it.  By  covering-  stalk  of  plant  in  the  hill  it 
will  send  out  roots,  make  a  strong^er,  better  plant  and 
produce  more  fruit. 

Experience  and  practice  in  former  times  has 
taught  us  that  tomato  vines  will  produce  more  fruit 
and  ripen  earlier  if  broken  down.  We  break  them 
down  as  follows :  Stand  close  to  the  plant,  stoop  half 
over,  bring  hands  together  in  front  of  you  with  arms 
at  full  length  in  form  of  a  letter  V  or  wedge,  with 
hands  still  together,  push  through  the  center  of  the 


^§ 


cc/^/F/}//rj 


I 

II 


^r/7/i/vsf/?ff/sj 


/'/F  /='i/i//r 


/i/c/i/V/iy: 


GARDENING     FOR    PROFIT  3 1 

plant.  Now  open  your  arms  and  hands,  and  with  a 
gentle  side  sweep  press  the  vines  as  separated  down 
hat  on  all  sides  of  the  hill.  Now  press  down  on  the 
lop  of  the  vines  as  they  lay  down.  Don't  be  afraid, 
press  them  down  so  they  will  stay  down.  If  this  is 
done  at  midday  }ou  will  not  break  off  one  vine  in  a 
hundred,  \lnes  when  broken  down  will  show  green 
tomatoes  three-fourths  size  of  the  first  setting. 

We  do  not  make  hotbeds.  We  have  a  set  of  boxes 
twenty-four  by  eighteen  inches,  and  one  and  one-half 
inches  deep,  that  we  take  to  the  greenhouse  with  our 
seed.  They  are  grown  in  these  boxes  and  when  they 
are  four  inches  high  we  take  them  home  and  transplant 
into  cold  frames.  This  saves  us  a  lot  of  expense  and 
labor,  and  we  always  have  fine  plants  ready  in  time  tu 
set  in  the  open  ground. 

We  have  successfully  grown  tomatoes  for  years, 
early  and  late,  and  are  satisfied  that  in  the  frames  is 
where  the  early  tomatoes  are  made.  In  our  opinion 
not  one  gardener  in  a  hundred  gives  the  plants  enough 
room  in  the  frames.  Our  plants  when  set  out  often 
have  small  tomatoes  set  and  are  large  and  stocky, 
healthy  plants,  that  when  properly  set  out  never  wilt 
down,  but  commence  at  once  to  grow. 

A  Cucumber  Expcriiucnt. — We  had  been  thinking 
for  some  time  about  growing  White  Spine  cucumbers 
for  slicing,  under  glass  outdoors.  This  proved  to  be 
one  of  the  most  profitable  and  interesting  experiments 
w^e  have  made  in  our  experience  of  twenty  years  as 
market  gardeners. 

We  had  on  hand  four  sash  eight  by  three  and  one- 
half  feet  with  no  glass  in.  We  purchased  cotton  cloth 
and  covered  these  frames.  We  also  used  five  sash 
with  glass  in  three  by  three  and  one-half  feet.  We 
plowed,  harrowed  and  cultivated  the  plot  to  be  used 
and  raked  it  level  with  a  garden  rake.     We  took  one- 


32 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


inch  hemlock  boards  twelve  inches  wide  and  made  a 
frame  forty-seven  feet  long  and  three  and  one-half 
feet  wide,  just  the  width  and  length  of  the  cloth  and 
glass  sashes  combined,  and  put  in  the  necessary  cross- 
pieces  to  slide  the  sash  on.  We  had  ready  a  compost 
manure  one-third  each  of  horse,  hog  and  hen  manure. 
This  had  been  thoroughly  worked  over  four  or  five 
times.  With  hoes  we  made  inside  this  frame  twelve 
holes  eight  inches  deep  and  two  feet  in  diameter.     Put 


CUCUMBER  VINES  DUSTED  WITH  LIME,  AND  BOX  FRAMES 


in  two  tile  sixteen  inches  long  and  two  inches  in  diam- 
eter. In  each  hill  we  put  a  heaping  shovelful  of  the 
compost  manure.  We  now  added  one-half  the  soil 
thrown  out  of  the  holes  to  the  manure  and  thoroughly 
mixed  it  with  a  spreading  fork.  We  then  put  on  each 
hill  all  the  hardwood  ashes  we  could  take  up  in  one 
hand,  then  put  back  the  balance  of  the  soil  thrown  out 
of  the  holes.     Sowed  five  pounds  of  potash  on  top  of 


GARDENING    FOR    TROFIT  33 

the  twelve  hills  and  raked  it  in  with  a  garden  rake. 
The  hills  were  now  four  inches  above  the  level  and 
held  the  tile  firm  and  upright.  We  now  sowed  four- 
teen seed  on  top  of  each  hill,  put  on  three-fourths 
inch  fine  soil,  put  on  the  sash  frames,  and  our 
cucumber  experiment  was  started. 

As  soon  as  they  were  out  of  the  ground,  on  warm 
days,  we  w^ould  water  lightly  on  the  surface.  On 
cloudy  days  would  not  touch  them;  they  got  all  the 
air  they  needed  through  the  cloth-covered  sashes.  We 
did  not  have  to  put  extra  covering  over  them  only  one 
night.  June  17  took  off  the  sashes  and  hoed  the  plants 
nicely.  They  then  looked  fine;  just  as  nice  under  the 
cloth  sashes  as  under  the  glass. 

We  now  commenced  to  water  in  the  tile,  and  from 
this  time  until  the  vines  were  pulled- up,  no  matter  how 
tired  we  were,  they  w^ere  watered  on  the  surface  in 
the  morning  and  in  the  tile  after  the  sun  went  down. 
They  grew  rapidly,  and  on  July  i  the  vines  had  com- 
pletely filled  the  frames  and  were  up  to  the  bottom  of 
the  sashes.  We  now  took  the  sash  and  frames  away, 
and  there  we  had  the  finest  hills  of  cucumbers  we  had 
ever  seen,  growing  in  the  same  length  of  time.  They 
continued  to  grow,  blossom  and  bear  until  the  rows 
were  a  solid  mass  of  vines  six  feet  wide. 

It  was  a  pleasure  to  tend  them  and  watch  them 
grow  and  bear.  Through  the  long-continued  drouth 
not  a  leaf  turned  yellow,  all  on  account  of  having  all 
the  water  they  wanted.  On  July  15  we  picked  the  first 
cucumber ;  when  we  picked  the  last  cucumber  Septem- 
ber II,  the  vines  were  still  green,  but  they  had  borne 
out ;  there  was  not  a  single  blossom  left. 

We  have  a  bath  tub  close  to  the  well  and  eight 
feet  from  where  we  grew  this  frame  of  cucumbers. 
The  water  used  was  pumped  into  the  bath  tub  every 
morning.     We  have  purchased  another  bath  tub,  also 


34  PRIZE     GARDENING 

a  tank  that  will  hold  four  barrels^  and  shall  try  this 
more  extensively  next  summer.  The  cucumbers  were 
large  when  cut,  weighing-  on  an  average  ten  pounds  to 
the  dozen.  Sales  from  the  twelve  hills,  eight  hundred 
and  thirty-five  at  from  one  to  four  cents  each,  fourteen 
dollars  and  twenty-seven  cents. 

Early  Potatoes. — The  ground  was  plowed  deep 
with  a  heavy  team,  thoroughly  harrowed  and  marked 
with  a  horse  marker  in  rows  three  feet  apart.  It  was 
then  furrowed  out  with  cultivator  with  double  mold- 
board  plow  attachment,  going  four  times  in  each  row 
and  making  furrows  seven  inches  deep  and  fifteen 
inches  wide.  The  soil  was  all  dry,  light  and  warm  by 
the  time  we  were  ready  to  cover  the  seed.  We  then 
scattered  finely  pulverized  hen  manure  in  the  rows. 
As  we  were  short  of  seed  we  planted  whole  small  pota- 
toes, dropping  them  on  the  manure  in  the  furrow,  one 
potato  in  a  place,  about  sixteen  inches  apart. 

We  put  the  side  hillers  on  the  cultivator  and  cov- 
ered the  potatoes  by  running  between  the  rows.  After 
covering  we  rolled  them  with  the  garden  roller,  run- 
ning it  on  top  of  the  rows.  In  seventeen  days  they  were 
all  up  so  we  could  see  the  rows.  We  then  went  over  the 
piece  with  a  straight,  square  steel-tooth  harrow  closed 
to  three  feet,  and  also  cultivated  between  the  rows  with 
the  cultivator  with  the  narrow  teeth.  On  June  14  we 
hilled  them,  using  the  hillers  on  the  cultivator,  and 
although  we  had  not  used  hand  hoes,  not  a  weed  was 
to  be  seen  and  there  was  not  a  missing  hill. 

Money  in  Berries. — Two  men  went  ahead  of  the 
horse  and  cultivator  with  common  hand  hay  rakes 
and  raked  the  straw  from  between  the  rows  up  on  the 
rows,  working  one  row  at  a  time.  We  then  went  twice 
through  each  row  with  cultivator,  small  teeth  on,  set 
to  run  deep.  This  loosened  up  the  soil  between  the 
rows.     The  straw  was  then  raked  back  into  the  rows 


GARDEXIXG     TOR     PROFIT  35 

as  fast  as  they  were  cultivated,  leavin.c^  a  lii^ht  cover- 
ing of  straw  on  the  plants,  the  idea  being  that  the  soil 
would  be  stirred  up  and  straw  put  back  on  it  would  act 
as  mulch  and  retain  the  moisture.  In  the  long-con- 
tinued drouth  that  followed  it  proved  to  be  a  good 
thing  and  saved  our  crop.  We  think  we  got  one-third 
more  fruit  by  the  above  method.  Sales  from  the  plot, 
two  hundred  and  twenty-eight  by  eighty-nine  feet,  were 
one  hundred  and  twenty-one  dollars  and  seventy  cents. 

In  our  opinion  the  hill  system  as  the  way  to  grow 
big  berries  and  lots  of  them.  Anyone  who  is  short 
of  ground  can  keep  a  bed  set  in  this  way  in  full  bearing 
for  three  years.     It  has  been  done  on  this  place. 

TJic  Palmetto  As  para  i^  us  beds  are  five  years  old, 
have  always  had  good  care  and  plenty  of  manure.  On 
April  19  we  cultivated  these  beds  with  cultivator, 
small  teeth  on.  iVftcr  cultivating  and  ridging  up  soil 
on  the  rows,  the  beds  were  harrowed  with  the  harrow 
closed  to  three  feet.  We  then  plowed  between  and 
forced  the  earth  upon  the  rows  over  the  plants.  This 
left  a  furrow  between  the  plants  about  six  inches  deep 
and  twenty  inches  wide.  Sowed  in  this  furrow  two 
hundred  pounds  of  coarse  ground  bone,  which  was 
worked  in  with  the  cultivator,  going  over  each  row 
twice.  We  then  went  over  the  beds  crosswise  with 
the  harrow  closed.  This  was  the  finish,  and  the  beds 
were  in  fine  shape,  being  mellow  and  free  from  weeds. 
We  use  bone  and  stable  manure  in  fall  and  we  grow 
fine  asparagus. 

Our  Viiicyard  contains  one  hundred  and  seven 
Wordcn  vines,  six  years  old.  It  was  manured  with 
stable  manure  and  cultivated  in  the  fall  of  1898.  On 
April  15  we  pruned  the  vines,  cutting  back  all  new 
wood  to  two  eyes,  and  all  old  wood  that  would  in  any 
way  interfere  with  the  growth  of  the  clusters  and  the 
free  circulation  of  air  and  sunshine.     After  pruning 


2,6  PRIZE     GARDENING 

we  tied  up  the  vines  to  the  wires,  being  careful  to  keep 
them  well  spread  in  fan  shape.  April  17  we  culti- 
vated the  vineyard  with  Planet  Jr  cultivator  with  small 
teeth  on,  going"  four  times  in  each  row.  This  left  the 
ground  fine  and  mellow. 

Weeds  were  kept  in  check  by  cultivating  and  hoe- 
ing. The  vines  made  a  splendid  growth  and  a  won- 
derful setting  of  fruit.  The  weight  of  new  wood  and 
fruit  was  such  as  to  threaten  breaking  down  the  trellis. 
On  August  II,  with  pruning  shears,  we  cut  back  the 
new  wood  to  within  ten  inches  of  the  last  cluster.  This 
saved  the  vines,  and  how  the  clusters  did  grow !  In 
twelve  years'  experience  growing  Worden  grapes  we 
never  saw  vines  carry  such  loads  of  fruit.  Experts 
estimated  the  crop  on  the  vines  at  one  and  one-half 
tons.  A  severe  frost  October  2  caught  many  of  them 
and  we  cut  but  two  thousand  four  hundred  and  fifty- 
five  pounds. 

The  Value  of  Labor  in  caring  for  the  crops  of  this 
good  garden  was  one  hundred  and  forty-seven  dollars 
and  thirty  cents,  for  preparing  the  products  for  market 
and  marketing  same  eighty-five  dollars,  manure  nine- 
teen dollars  and  forty  cents,  plants  and  seeds  ten  dol- 
lars and  nine  cents,  picking  two  thousand  one  hundred 
quarts  strawberries  thirty-one  dollars  and  fifty  cents, 
picking  currants  and  raspberries  six  dollars  and  two 
cents,  incidental  expenses  one  dollar  and  five  cents,  or 
a  total  of  three  hundred  dollars  and  thirty-six  cents. 
There  was  sold  up  to  the  time  the  report  closed  four 
hundred  and  forty  dollars  and  forty-nine  cents  worth 
of  fruits  and  vegetables,  used  in  familv  twenty-seven 
dollars  and  seventy-six  cents,  and  on  hand  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty-five  dollars  and  seventy-three  cents. 
or  a  total  of  five  hundred  and  ninety-three  dollars  and 
ninety-eight  cents,  leaving  a  profit  above  cost  of  two 
hundred  and  ninety-three  dollars  and  sixty-two  cents. 


GARDENING    FOR    PROFIT  };j 

A  Tzcciity-acrc  Garden. — One  of  the  largest  gar- 
dens, or  L^arden  farms,  was  that  of  W.  H.  McMillen, 
Oshkosh,  Wisconsin.  The  whole  place  of  twenty  acres 
was  entered  and  the  method  with  each  important  crop 
is  told  in  detail,  receiving  a  ten-dollar  prize.  Income 
was  ahout  one  thousand  two  hundred  and  fifty  dollars 
and  cost  about  five  hundred  and  fifty.  The  expense 
account  is  somewhat  unusual,  as  it  includes  all  house- 
hold expenses  as  well  as  payments  for  business  supplies 
and  hired  help.  But  no  allowance  is  made  for  the  w^ork 
and  time  of  the  owner.  Thus  the  seven  hundred  sur- 
plus represents  the  cash  sum  which  the  owner  receives 
for  his  time  and  investment,  having  received  also  his 
living  expenses  for  the  period,  March  to  November. 
The  manure  was  mostly  obtained  for  the  hauling. 
Among  the  expense  items  are  noticed  one  hundred  and 
forty  dollars  for  hired  man  eight  months,  ninety-seven 
dollars  and  forty  cents  fur  picking  berries,  thirty-seven 
dollars  for  hired  girl,  twenty  dollars  for  wood  and 
twenty-two  dollars  for  coal,  twenty-eight  dollars  for 
dry  goods,  other  items  being  mostly  for  provisions  and 
farm  supplies,  h^ollowing  is  the  cream  of  Mr.  ]\Ic- 
Millen's  very  instructive  account : 

The  first  seed  that  are  sown  in  the  open  ground 
are  peas.  I  sow  on  well  enriched  land  and  prefer 
rather  a  heavy  soil  for  peas.  I  plow  the  land  in  the 
fall,  then  disk,  lapping  the  disk  one-half.  This  leaves 
no  ridges.  Then  drag  the  land,  plank  and  drag,  and 
plank  again.  Then  I  have  land  as  mellow  as  an  ash 
bed.  I  use  a  seed  drill,  hill  dropper  and  fertilizer 
combined.  I  have  a  two-foot  marker  instead  of  an 
eighteen-inch,  one  that  comes  with  the  drill.  I  set  my 
marker  two  feet  and  sow  peas  very  thick  in  rows.  I  sow 
two  rows  about  four  inches  apart  and  then  two  feet; 
this  gives  the  vines  a  better  chance  to  stand  up.  One 
row  supports  the  other.  I  find  this  a  very  profitable  way 


38 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


to  grow  them.  When  two  inches  high  I  begin  to  cul- 
tivate them.  I  use  a  twelve-tooth  cultivator  and  aim 
to  cultivate  twice  a  week  until  last  cultivating.  I  then 
use  a  larger  shovel,  throwing  some  dirt  to  the  roots. 

Next  come  the  onions.  I  plow  in  the  fall.  Manure 
well  before  plowing,  and  after  I  use  well-rotted  manure 
for  the  dressing.     Disk  in,  harrow,  plank  and  harrow, 


A  THRIFTY  MARKET  GARDEN 


and  plank,  and  you  will  have  your  bed  as  fine  and  as 
mellow  as  an  ash  bed.  We  sow  our  seeds  middling 
shallow  and  thick.  If  they  should  be  too  thick  you 
can  thin  them  out.  We  sow  them  twenty  inches 
between  rows;  we  use  a  seed  drill,  and  when  the 
onions  are  up  so  I  can  see  the  rows  I  go  through  them 


GARDEJS^ING    FOR    PROFIT  39 

with  a  wheel  hoe,  to  which  1  attach  a  pair  of  rakes  so 
as  to  straddle  the  row  s,  and  the  rakes  will  loosen  the 
earth.  Next  we  take  ott  the  rakes  and  attach  the 
sculler  hoe,  which  we  run  between  the  rows  twice,  and 
when  the  onions  are  four  inches  high  we  weed  them. 
This  is  done  with  a  hand  weeder,  and  this  is  the  time 
to  thin  them  should  they  be  too  thick.  We  usually 
weed  them  twice  on  hands  and  knees.  Next  we  use 
tl'ke  one-horse,  fine-tooth  cultivator.  We  sow  a  small 
patch  of  carrots  and  beets  for  early  use  and  treat  them 
the  same  as  onions. 

Next  we  planted  early  potatoes.  I  like  a  sandy 
soil  with  clover  turned  under  about  September  and 
then  in  the  spring  apply  a  light  coat  of  manure,  and 
disk,  lapping  one-half.  This  will  cut  nearly  as  deep 
as  if  it  were  plowed.  Drag  and  plank.  Mark  three 
feet  between  rows ;  furrow  out ;  drop  seed  twelve 
inches  apart,  two  to  three  eyes  in  a  piece  of  potato, 
then  cover  with  a  hoe  lightly  and  when  coming  up 
drag  them.  1  use  a  lever  drag,  tipping  the  lever  so 
the  teeth  are  quite  slanting,  dragging  the  same  way 
as  planted.  When  three  or  four  inches  high  we  use 
the  fine-tootli  cultivator.  Next  cultivating  use  the 
large  cultivator.  We  keep  them  cultivated  as  long  as 
the  vines  will  permit,  then  we  hill  them.  By  planting 
close  we  get  a  heavy  growth  of  vines.  They  come 
together  and  shade  the  roots  and  therefore  keep  mois- 
ture in  the  land.  We  cultivate  as  long  as  we  can  before 
hilling.  We  have  good  results  from  growing  by  this 
method. 

Next  we  set  out  strawberries.  I  Hke  a  fall  plow- 
ing with  a  heavy  coat  of  manure  turned  under.  I  top- 
dress  the  bed  with  a  fine  and  well-rotted  manure. 
Disk,  drag  and  plank.  Mark  four  feet  between  rows. 
Every  other  row  I  set  with  a  fertilizing  berry.  I 
never  mark  over  three  rows  at  a  time  before  I  set. 


40  PRIZE     GARDENING 

I  have  a  hand  marker,  making  three  rows  at  once.  I 
set  two  of  them  and  use  the  third  for  a  Hne  to  mark 
back  on.  I  use  a  trowel  for  setting.  I  never  dig  more 
plants  at  one  time  than  I  can  set  in  half  a  day,  and  I 
keep  them  well  sprinkled  and  covered  with  a  blanket. 
This  is  my  method  of  setting  strawberries,  and  I 
always  have  a  good  stand  of  plants.  In  setting  them 
I  allow  eighteen  inches  apart  in  the  rows. 

Next  I  set  my  early  cabbages.  Manure  heavy  and 
plow  deep.  Fall  plowing  I  like  best.  I  do  not  think 
fall  plowing  is  affected  so  much  by  drouth  as  spring 
plowing.  I  like  a  top  dressing.  Disk  and  drag  and 
plank;  mark  three  feet,  set  eighteen  to  twenty  inches 
apart  in  rows.  I  use  the  Charleston  Wakefield  for 
early.  When  the  plants  have  been  set  a  week,  culti- 
vate with  a  fine-tooth  cultivator,  and  then  hoe. 

If  I  am  to  set  any  raspberries  I  pick  a  piece  of 
light  soil  with  a  red  clay  bottom  land  that  will  grow 
a  good  crop  of  corn.  Plow  deep,  drag,  plank  and 
mark  seven  feet  one  way  and  four  feet  the  other,  then 
use  the  cultivator.  I  take  all  the  shovels  off  but  one 
large  one,  furrow  one  way  (deep)  and  drop  the  plants 
in  the  four-foot  mark.  One  drops  the  plants  and  one 
covers.  When  I  am  selecting  a  quantity  of  plants  I 
dig  the  new  plants  which  come  up  in  the  spring,  put- 
ting about  four  of  them  in  one  hill.  This  will  give  a 
nice  hill  of  new  canes  for  the  next  season  without  wait- 
ing for  shoots  to  come  up  from  the  setting.  Having 
finished  setting,  I  cultivate  both  ways,  then  I  shall 
have  the  furrows  filled  and  the  land  level.  I  usually 
plant  two  rows  of  corn  between  the  rows  first  year. 
Second  year  I  plant  a  row  of  potatoes  between.  By 
doing  this  I  keep  the  bushes  well  cultivated  and  grow 
a  nice  crop  of  potatoes.  After  the  second  year  it  is 
useless  to  plant  anything  between  them,  but  keep  them 


GARDENING    FOR    PROFIT  4I 

well  cultivated.  This  rule  applies  for  setting  black 
raspberries  and  blackberries. 

Land  that  will  grow  a  fair  crop  of  corn  will  grow 
tomatoes.  I  plow  my  land  in  the  fall,  and  in  the  spring 
disk,  lapping  one-half.  Drag,  plank,  and  drag  and 
plank  again,  then  mark  four  and  one-half  feet  each 
way.  Use  a  heavy  one-horse  marker.  Mark  as  deep 
as  possible,  and  if  the  land  is  mellow  dig  the  holes  with 
the  hands.  We  set  three  and  one-half  acres  this 
spring.  When  we  are  ready  to  set  we  take  one  horse 
and  a  stone  boat  and  set  the  plants  on  the  boat,  and 
drive  between  the  rows ;  one  man  to  drop  them  and 
two  men  to  set  them.  The  plants  are  dropped  on  each 
crossing,  using  our  hands  to  dig  the  holes.  Set  the 
]jlants  in ;  press  the  dirt  firmly  about  the  plants ;  when 
they  have  been  set  one  week,  fill  in.  if  any  are  missing, 
and  cultivate  each  way.  I  give  them  all  the  cultivating 
I  can.  We  have  a  nice  clean  patch,  plenty  of  fruit 
and  never  had  a  hoe  in  them. 

A  Gardener's  Calendar. — The  routine  of  a  good- 
sized  farm  market  garden  is  also  related  in  a  very  help- 
ful manner  by  a  successful  contestant,  G.  J.  Townsend, 
of  Wayne  county.  New  York,  and  his  story  is  quoted 
below  for  the  five  busy  months  beginning  with : 

April. — I  plowed  about  nine  or  ten  inches  deep. 
Potatoes  I  planted  in  drills  about  fourteen  inches  by 
three  feet,  four  or  five  inches  deep.  Onion  seed  I 
sowed  in  drills  fourteen  inches  apart.  Beets  and  car- 
rots I  sowed  in  drills  two  feet  apart.  The  above 
ground  T  harrowed  three  or  four  times  and  rolled ; 
the  last  time  I  attached  a  plank  behind  the  harrow  to 
leave  it  smooth.  The  rhubarb  and  asparasfus  beds  I 
dug  up  about  three  or  four  inches  deep.  Seed  pota- 
toes I  cut  two  or  three  eyes  in  a  piece.  T  raked  off 
about  half  the  straw  from  the  strawberry  bed,  leaving 
the  rest  for  mulching  and  to  keep  the  berries  clean. 


42 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


By  leaving  this  straw  on  them  a  week  or  two  longer 
it  will  protect  them  from  frost  and  prolong  the  season 
for  ripe  berries.  I  put  a  small  handful  of  fertilizer 
on  the  hills  of  potatoes  and  worked  it  in  with  the 
weeder.  I  soaked  some  of  the  seed  potatoes  in  corro- 
sive sublimate  water  for  scabs  before  cutting.  I  take 
about  two  ounces  corrosive  sublimate  dissolved  in  a 
little  warm  water,  then  put  it  into  about  sixteen  gal- 
lons of  water  in  a  barrel;  stir  it  up  well,  put  in  pota- 


WORKING  A  NEW  YORK  TRUCK  PATCH 


toes  and  let  them  soak  about  one  and  one-half  hours. 
This  water  is  good  for  about  four  batches.  Be  care- 
ful that  stock  do  not  eat  any  of  the  seed.  Hotbeds 
made  the  last  of  March  and  first  of  April  I  only  put 
about  a  foot  of  manure  in. 

May. — I  set  strawberry  plants  three  and  one-half 
feet  by  twenty  inches  in  rows,  digging  the  hole  with 
a  trowel  and  pressing  the  dirt  firmly  around  the  roots. 


GARDENING    FOR    PROFIT  43 

Corn  I  planted  three  by  two  feet,  about  four  or  five  ker- 
nels in  a  hill.  Some  of  the  onion,  beet  and  carrot  seeds 
did  not  even  come  up  on  account  of  the  wind  blowing 
the  dirt  off  of  them.  I  try  to  run  the  weeder  over 
potatoes  once  a  week,  and  after  every  shower  as  soon 
as  they  are  dry  enough,  until  they  get  to  about  eight 
inches  high,  then  run  cultivator  as  long  as  I  can  get 
through.  By  doing  this  I  do  not  have  much  hoeing 
and  keep  in  the  moisture.  All  the  hilling  they  get  is 
with  the  wings  on  the  cultivator.  To  burn  worms' 
nests  out  of  trees  I  get  a  long  pole  and  tie  some  waste 
or  cotton  on  the  end  with  wire  and  put  on  some 
kerosene. 

About  the  first  of  ]\Iay  I  leave  the  covering  off  of 
the  tomatoes  in  frames  day  and  night  to  harden  them, 
if  there  is  no  danger  of  frost.  Give  the  plants  a  good 
watering  before  taking  up.  I  take  one  plant  up  at  a 
time  with  a  handful  of  dirt  pressed  together  and  put 
them  in  crates.  I  set  the  Atlantic  Prize  three  and 
one-half  by  three  feet,  the  Champion  three  and  one- 
half  by  two  feet.  Dig  a  hole  with  a  fork,  drop  in  a 
small  handful  of  fertilizer  one  side,  put  water  in  hole, 
set  plants,  mix  fertilizer  with  dirt,  keeping  it  away  from 
the  roots.  For  about  two  weeks  after  tomatoes  are 
set  keep  watch  of  the  potato  bugs  and  pick  them  off. 
Putting  cold  water  on  plants  to  draw  out  the  frost  is 
all  right  when  it  does  not  freeze.  Better  cover  pota- 
toes with  dirt  with  a  plow  before  a  frost.  All  the  blos- 
soms on  the  new  strawberry  bed  I  keep  picked  off. 
Putting  wood  ashes  on  onions  after  weeding  will  help 
to  keep  the  insects  away.  When  through  with  the 
hotbed  sashes  I  put  them  under  cover.  I  give  them  a 
coat  of  paint  every  three  or  four  years. 

Jtine. — I  kept  the  runners  out  off  the  strawberry 
plants  until  about  the  first  of  July.  I  cultivated  the 
potatoes   shallow  toward   the   last.     Thinned  out  the 


44  PRIZE     GARDENING 

beets  to  four  or  five  inches  apart  and  the  carrots  to  two 
or  three  inches  apart.  The  best  way  is  to  pick  the  bugs 
from  the  squashes  every  day.  Carbohc  acid  dikited 
with  water  will  keep  the  bugs  away  for  three  or  four 
days.  I  paris  green  the  potatoes  with  a  spray  pump. 
It  holds  about  a  pint  of  water.  Put  in  one  teaspoon- 
ful  of  paris  green  every  time.  The  Early  Michigan 
tomato  plants  I  set  out  four  by  four  feet  apart  and  the 
cabbages  two  and  one-half  by  two  and  one-half  feet. 
I  pay  one  and  one-half  cents  for  picking  strawberries, 
one-fourth  cent  more  than  the  regular  price.  I  have 
them  assorted  when  they  are  picked,  being  careful  not 
to  have  them  bruised.  The  two-year-old  strawberry 
bed  on  the  east  side  was  nearly  a  failure  on  account 
of  freezing  and  the  drouth.  I  only  covered  the  new 
bed  with  straw.  After  picking  a  few  quarts  from  this 
old  bed  I  plowed  it  and  set  it  to  tomatoes  and  cabbages. 
I  had  six  kinds  of  strawberries  this  year,  the  Wilson, 
Buback,  Jessie,  Marshall,  Sharpless  and  Van  Deman. 
The  Buback,  Jessie  and  Wilson  have  done  the  best  for 
me.  The  Van  Deman  is  a  good  early  berry.  Thq 
Sharpless  I  have  given  up  and  shall  give  up  the  Mar- 
shall next  year.  The  celery  plants  I  transplanted  when 
about  two  inches  high  into  a  well  prepared  bed,  about 
two  inches  apart. 

July. — The  early  potato  ground  I  sowed  to  tur- 
nips in  drills  two  feet  apart.  Cucumber  seed  I  planted 
in  hills  about  six  feet  apart,  twelve  to  fifteen  seeds  to 
a  hill,  thinning  out  to  about  six  vines  in  a  hill.  Pump- 
kins I  thinned  to  two  or  three  vines  in  a  hill.  Renewed 
the  old  strawberry  bed  by  mowing  them  down  after 
fruiting  and  cultivating  and  hoeing  them  out.  Set 
out  one  row  of  strawberries  between  a  row  of  potatoes. 
Cauliflower  I  set  two  and  one-half  feet  apart.  For 
celery  I  dug  trenches  about  ten  inches  deep,  worked  in 


GARDENING    FOR    I'Kolir  45 

some  well-rotted  manure,  set  plants  about  six  inches 
apart,  watered  well.  The  trenches  I  have  about  four 
feet  apart. 

August. — I  picked  the  onions  up  in  crates  and 
drew  them  to  the  corn  house  to  be  topped  some  rainy 
dav.     The  Atlantic  Prize  tomato  is  the  earliest,  but 


A  YORK  STATE  TRUCK  PATCH  IN  JULY 

will  not  sell  well  when  other  kinds  are  in  the  market. 
The  Dwarf  Champion  is  the  best  for  general  use.  The 
Early  Michigan  is  a  good  tomato,  but  rotted  some  this 
year.  On  my  other  ground  the  Stone  proved  to  be 
the  best  canning  tomato. 

Money  from  a  Minnesota  Garden. — Some  of  the 
best  market  gardens  were  in  the  northwest,  and  the 
returns  usually  show  fair  prices  and  brisk  demand. 
A   profitable   six   acres   is   described   by   C.   L.    Hill, 


46  PRIZE     GARDENING 

Minnesota,  sixth  Allen  prize  winner.  Land  being-  more 
plenty  than  labor,  the  methods  were  directed  toward 
production  of  most  returns  for  least  labor.  Nothing 
was  crowded.  Even  the  onions  and  beets  were  in 
rows  three  feet  apart,  so  that  they  could  be  cultivated 
by  horse  and  wheel  hoes.  Onions  were  weeded  twice 
by  hand,  also  some  other  crops. 

The  financial  results  are  worked  out  clearly  and 
with  care,  showing  total  income  of  eight  hundred  and 
twenty-five  dollars  and  twenty-five  cents  and  net  profit 
of  five  hundred  and  ninety  dollars  and  ninety  cents. 
No  manure  or  fertilizer  seems  to  have  been  used,  and 
the  main  charge  is  two  hundred  and  thirty-two  dollars 
and  fifty-five  cents  for  labor,  most  of  which  is  for  one 
man,  with  an  extra  hand  for  three  or  four  months.  In 
round  sums  the  labor  cost  twenty-five  dollars  in  May, 
fifty  dollars  in  June,  fifty  dollars  in  July,  thirty-eight 
dollars  in  August,  forty-seven  dollars  in  September  and 
twenty-three  dollars  in  October,  the  account  including 
every  stroke  of  labor  done.  Mr.  Hill  seems  to  have 
solved  the  problem  of  making  a  living  from  six  acres, 
even  in  a  season  unfavorable  to  some  crops.  An  inter- 
esting feature  of  his  account  is  the  valuation  of  crops 
expressed  in  rate  per  acre,  which  is  as  follows  in  even 
dollars : 

Beets,  per  acre,  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  dol- 
lars ;  cabbage,  one  hundred  and  eleven  dollars ;  car- 
rots, one  hundred  and  twenty-eight  dollars;  cauli- 
flower, one  hundred  and  fifty-three  dollars ;  sweet  corn, 
ninety-two  dollars ;  cucumbers,  one  hundred  and  twen- 
ty-nine dollars ;  currants,  sixty-seven  dollars ;  ground 
cherries,  two  hundred  and  thirteen  dollars ;  gooseber- 
ries, ninety-five  dollars ;  lettuce,  one  hundred  and  thirty 
dollars ;  muskmelons,  one  hundred  and  sixty-four  dol- 
lars ;  onions,  one  hundred  and  forty-five  dollars ;  pars- 
nips, two  hundred  and  four  dollars ;  pepper  eighty-six 


GARDENING    FOR    PROFIT  47 

dollars ;  pie  plant,  one  hundred  and  twenty-three  dol- 
lars ;  early  potatoes,  one  hundred  and  five  dollars ;  peas, 
seventy-five  dollars ;  radishes,  sixty-nine  dollars ;  rasp- 
berries, two  hundred  and  twenty-six  dollars ;  squashes, 
eighty-eif^^ht  dollars ;  strawberries,  two  hundred  and 
forty  dollars ;  tomatoes,  one  hundred  and  twelve  dol- 
lars ;  turnips,  eighty-six  dollars. 

A  Large  and  Profitable  Market  Garden  was  con- 
ducted by  A.  Brackett,  Excelsior,  ^^linnesota,  the  fif- 
teenth regular  prize  winner.  There  were  four  and  one- 
half  acres,  renting  value  five  dollars  per  acre.  Most  of 
the  produce  was  sold  at  wholesale.  Total  proceeds,  five 
hundred  and  thirteen  dollars  and  ninety-one  cents ; 
expense,  two  hundred  and  five  dollars  and  eighty-two 
cents ;  nct^  three  hundred  and  eight  dollars  and  nine 
cents.  Writes  Mr.  Brackett:  *' Our  estimate  on  ex- 
pense was  figured  at  one  dollar  and  a  half  per  day  for 
labor,  but  taking  out  all  other  expenses,  we  find  that 
we  cleared  four  dollars  and  a  quarter  a  day." 


CHAPTER   IV 


GOOD    FARM     GARDENS 


The  claim  has  been  made  that  the  tillers  of  the  soil 
in  the  more  thickly  settled  parts  of  the  continent  are  no 
longer  strictly  farmers,  but  gardeners,  rather ;  deriving 
their  incomes  less  from  staple  farm  crops  than  from 
vegetables,  fruit  and  specialties.  This  is  an  extreme 
statement  of  a  growing  tendency  of  farmers  near  good 
markets  to  emphasize  the  production  of  crops,  the  value 
of  which  depends  largely  upon  being  used  while  fresh, 
thus  assuring  the  cream  of  the  market  to  nearby 
growers.  In  growing  staple  crops,  cheap  and  distant 
lands  may  compete,  but  in  producing  the  perishable 
specialties  a  convenient  location  gives  decided  advan- 
tage. The  tendency  to  larger  and  better  farm  gardens 
is,  however,  noticed  also  in  sections  comparatively  new ; 
a  fact  which  shows  the  increasing  prosperity  of  the 
people  and  their  ability  to  appreciate  and  pay  for  more 
of  the  solid,  wholesome  luxuries.  The  gardens  here 
described  are  those  of  farmers  who  make  more  or  less 
of  a  specialty  of  fruit  and  vegetables. 

A  Luxuriant  Iowa  Garden  of  four  acres  is  clearly 
described  by  A.  A.  Atwood,  Shenandoah,  Iowa,  winner 
of  sixth  regular  prize.  He  grew  produce  worth  two 
hundred  and  twenty-eight  dollars  and  twenty-five  cents 
at  a  cost  of  ninety-four  dollars  and  thirty-eight  cents, 
of  which  fourteen  dollars  was  for  rent,  sixteen  dollars 
and  forty  cents  for  seeds,  etc.,  and  sixty-three  dollars 
and  twenty-five  cents  for  labor,  reckoning  teams  at 
two  dollars  per  day  and  men  one  dollar.     The  total 


GOOD    FARM     GARDENS  49 

amount  actually  paid  out  was  thirty-three  dollars  and 
ninety  cents  and  the  crops  actually  sold  were  one  hun- 
dred and  nineteen  dollars  and  fifty-eight  cents.  No 
manures  seem  to  have  been  used. 

The  Henderson  bush  lima  produced  at  the  rate  of 
one  hundred  and  forty  bushels  per  acre  in  the  pod,  and 
cost  at  rate  of  thirty-nine  dollars  and  twelve  cents  per 
acre.  They  shelled  two  and  one-fourth  quarts  to  the 
peck.  Planted  ^Nlay  8,  they  were  ready  to  use  August 
5.  Garden  beets  planted  April  21  were  ready  for  use 
June  17  and  June  26,  according  to  earliness  of  location. 
Yield  was  at  rate  of  seven  hundred  bushels  per  acre. 
Early  cabbage,  planted  in  cold  frames  April  13,  was 
transplanted  May  17,  was  hoed  and  cultivated  twice, 
and  was  first  used  for  table  July  17.  Variety,  Burpee's 
All  Head.  Crop  at  rate  of  four  thousand  five  hundred 
and  ten  per  acre,  worth  one  hundred  and  seventy-one 
dollars  and  thirty-eight  cents,  at  cost  for  seed  and  labor 
of  twenty-nine  dollars  and  fifteen  cents.  Late  cabbage 
was  transplanted  June  17,  was  sprayed  for  cabbage 
worm  September  6  with  one  ounce  insect  powder  to 
three  gallons  water,  mixing  twenty-four  hours  before 
wanted. 

Early  Shaker  sweet  corn,  planted  ]\Iay  8,  was 
ready  July  26  and  yielded  at  the  rate  of  seven  thousand 
one  hundred  and  fifty  ears  and  five  and  one-half  bushels 
seed  per  acre,  worth  forty-two  dollars  and  sixteen  dol- 
lars, respectively,  at  a  cost  of  sixteen  dollars.  White 
Rice  popcorn  yielded  at  rate  of  sixty-six  bushels  at  a 
cost  of  fourteen  dollars  and  fifty-five  cents.  Of  sev- 
eral kinds  of  pickling  cucumbers,  Early  Frame  proved 
most  i)rofitable,  being  early,  productive  and  easily 
gathered.  Spraying  with  one  ounce  sulphur  to  one 
gallon  water  drove  away  the  lice.  Thick  planting  pro- 
vided plants  enough  to  spare  some  for  the  striped 
beetle,  a  plan  found  cheaper  than  liming  or  other  reme- 


50  PRIZE     GARDENING 

dies.  Crop  was  at  rate  of  one  hundred  and  twenty-six 
thousand  five  hundred  per  acre,  worth  two  hundred 
and  fifty-three  dollars  and  costing  sixty-seven  dollars 
and  sixty-five  cents.  Three  pounds  of  seed  were  gath- 
ered from  five  hundred  grown  specimens.  Onions  pro- 
duced at  the  rate  of  three  hundred  and  seventy  bushels, 
the  Prizetaker  variety  proving  the  most  productive. 
White  Portugal  was  smaller  than  Wethersfield  or 
Silver  Skin.  Peas  gave  about  two  hundred  bushels 
per  acre.  The  produce  of  an  acre  of  tomatoes  sold  at 
five  dollars  per  ton  to  the  canners  brought  thirty-six 
dollars  and  thirty-three  cents.  In  regard  to  his  potato 
field  of  one  acre,  Mr.  Atwood  writes  : 

The  ground  planted  to  potatoes  last  year  had  been 
in  corn  the  year  previous.  The  variety  was  Early 
Ohio.  The  seed  was  somewhat  scabby  and  small,  aver- 
aging about  the  size  of  a  walnut  with  the  shuck  on, 
the  larger  ones  being  cut  into  pieces  with  one  or  two 
eyes.  The  seed  was  cut  as  the  potatoes  were  sorted. 
We  finished  planting  April  25  and  used  eight  bushels 
of  seed.  They  were  all  up  by  May  15.  They  were 
cultivated  twice  during  the  season,  May  24  and  June 
I,  with  a  two-horse  cultivator,  and  harrowed  the  day 
following  the  first  cultivation  for  the  purpose  of 
killing  the  scattering  weeds  and  leveling  the  ground. 
They  were  hoed  after  the  first  cultivation.  At  the  last 
cultivation  the  cultivator  shovels  were  turned  so  as  to 
ridge  up  or  throw  the  dirt  along  the  row.  On  June 
2.2  we  went  over  the  piece  with  a  hoe  and  cut  out  what 
scattering  weeds  remained. 

We  began  using  new  potatoes  June  30  and  con- 
sumed twelve  bushels  up  to  October  i,  when  the  crop 
was  dug,  the  total  yield  being  one  hundred  and  fifty 
bushels.  The  potatoes  were  dug  or  plowed  out,  using 
the  corn  lister,  it  throwing  a  double  furrow,  one  each 
way,  and  being  very  convenient  for  that  purpose.     It 


GOOD    Fx\RM     GARDENS  51 

took  a  man  and  team  nine  hours  to  plow  out  the  pota- 
toes and  two  men  six  hours  each  on  three  days  to  pick 
them  up.  The  cost  was  as  follows :  Preparing 
ground,  two  dollars  and  fifteen  cents ;  seed,  eight 
bushels  at  sixty  cents,  four  dollars  and  eighty  cents ; 
cutting  and  planting,  two  dollars ;  cultivating,  three 
dollars  and  sixty  cents ;  harvesting,  four  dollars  and 
twenty  cents ;  total,  sixteen  dollars  and  seventy-five 
cents,  or  eleven  and  two-tenths  cents  per  bushel.  Writ- 
ing since  the  contest  I\Ir.  Atwood  says : 

The  experience  gained  from  the  prize  garden 
was  so  great  and  important  that  it  would  be  hard  to 
tell  which  was  the  most  so.  One  very  essential  part 
was  that  it  pays  to  keep  an  itemized  account  of  the 
work,  kinds  and  amount  of  seed  planted ;  see  which  is 
the  most  productive  and  give  the  garden  proper  care 
and  attention.  By  so  doing  a  person  can  tell  just  what 
benefit  it  is  and  which  part  pays  best. 

Having  thoroughly  investigated  it  I  can  honestly 
say  that  every  farmer  should  grow  enough  at  least  for 
family  use  of  such  kinds  or  varieties  of  garden  vege- 
tables as  they  would  most  desire,  the  size  of  the  garden 
depending  largely  upon  the  size  of  the  family  using  it. 

Born  in  Whiteside  county,  Illinois,  August  29, 
1856,  I  received  a  common  school  education  and  lived 
there  until  the  year  1880,  when  I  moved  to  Page  county, 
Iowa,  where  (with  the  exception  of  two  years  that  I 
lived  in  Omaha,  Nebraska,  most  of  the  time  conduct- 
ing a  hotel,  and  in  Florida  one  season  studying  their 
mode  of  gardening  and  fruit  raising,  and  part  of  a 
season  on  the  Pacific  coast  for  the  same  purpose),  the 
principal  part  of  my  time  has  been  put  in  farming  and 
gardening.  While  living  on  the  farm  I  filled  several 
small  offices,  including  that  of  township  justice  of  the 
peace.  In  1890  I  took  the  United  States  census  in  a 
part  of  Fremont  county,  Iowa,  and  in  1900  I  took  it 


52  PRIZE     GARDENING 

in  a  part  of  Page  county,  Iowa.  I  have  traveled  around 
a  great  deal,  principally  to  look  at  the  country;  have 
been  in  nearly  every  state  south  and  west  of  and  includ- 
ing Ohio. 

A  Connecticut  Valley  Garden. — A  concise,  read- 
able story  is  told  by  G.  W.  F.  Campbell,  Hampshire 
county,  Massachusetts^  winner  of  second  Woodruff 
prize.  His  lot  comprised  eighteen-one  hundredths  of 
an  acre  of  sandy  loam  in  the  Connecticut  river  valley. 
Tools  and  land  were  worth  forty-six  dollars ;  seed,  two 
dollars  and  ten  cents ;  fertilizers,  seven  dollars  and 
thirty-five  cents.  A  limited  but  well  chosen  list  was 
planted,  including  Egyptian  beet,  Valentine,  Six  Weeks 
and  bush  lima  beans.  First  of  All  corn.  Bliss  Everbear- 
ing and  Notts  Excelsior  peas,  also  radishes,  lettuce 
and  onions.  By  limiting  variety  he  was  able  to  give 
more  space  to  each  species,  and  to  save  cost  by  getting 
seeds  at  quart  and  pound  rates ;  labor  at  fifteen  to 
twenty-five  cents  per  hour  cost  twelve  dollars  and  nine 
cents ;  income  was  twenty-eight  dollars  and  seventy- 
one  cents ;  net  gain,  seven  dollars  and  fifty-four  cents, 
or  seventeen  per  cent  on  the  invested  value  in  land  and 
tools.     Mr.  Campbell  writes  the  following  account: 

The  spot  was  a  garden  and  onion  field  last  year. 
Previous  to  that  time  it  was  an  old  orchard.  In  the  fall 
a  coat  of  manure  was  put  on  and  plowed  in.  This  spring 
the  land  was  pulverized  with  a  smoothing  harrow. 
Fertilizer  was  sown  before  putting  on  the  smoothmg 
harrow.  April  24,  onion  and  lettuce  seeds  were  sown 
in  drills.  On  the  26th,  beets,  spinach,  peas,  radishes 
and  beans  were  planted.  The  peas,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  a  few,  were  soaked  in  water  twenty-four  hours. 
May  3  found  the  soaked  peas  up,  while  those  planted 
dry  did  not  appear  until  two  days  later.  Six  rhubarb 
plants,  which  were  manured  this  spring,  and  also  the 
strawberry  plants  looked  thrifty  at  this  date.     Between 


GOOD    FARM     GARDENS 


53 


May  9  and  12  a  smoothing-  harrow  was  used  on  all 
ground  not  yet  planted,  to  keep  down  weeds  and  pre- 
pare for  seeding^.  Onions,  spinach  and  beans  were 
cultivated  with  a  wheel  hoe  Alay  12,  with  very  satis- 
factory results.  When  using  the  machine  the  dirt  is 
thrown  from  the  row  and  not  on  the  growing  crops. 
The  machine  does  good  work  and  runs  easily,  as  was 
proved  in  furrowing  out  to  plant  the  second  lot  of  peas 
and  beans. 


GAKDKN  OF  (r,  W.  F.  CAMPBIILL 

Nearly  all  seeds  have  been  sown  and  planted  with- 
out firming  the  ground.  This  prevents  excessive 
evaporation  and  assists  the  seeds  to  come  up  quickly. 
Watering  the  garden  with  a  rake  is  an  effective  method. 
A  layer  of  loose  earth  on  top  holds  the  moisture  in  the 
ground  and  frequent  rakings  keep  the  surface  from 
crusting. 

Lima  beans  planted  with  eyes  down  wnll  appear 
quickly  and  not  rot  as  when  planted  the  other  way. 


54 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


May  20  found  the  beans  up  and  looking  thrifty.     On 
June  5,  radishes  of  the  second  planting  were  pulled. 

The  strawberry  yield  was  in  every  way  gratifying. 
The  berries  were  plenty  and  of  good  flavor  and  size. 
From  the  small  bed,  nine  hundred  and  twenty-four 
square  feet,  six  bushels  were  picked.  These  were 
enjoyed  by  the  family  and  distributed  among  the  neigh- 
bors and  friends,  as  were  the  vegetables.  Two  strips 
where  the  strawberries  were  last  year  were  cultivated 


ONIONS  FOR  EXHIBIT 


so  as  to  give  the  runners  room.  The  best  of  the  plants 
that  were  torn  up  were  used  to  set  a  small  patch,  thus 
making  a  new  bed  for  next  year.  This  method  would 
not  be  advisable  were  the  bed  weedy.  In  order  to 
insure  a  continuous  crop  the  land  must  be  kept  rich. 

Late  peas  were  planted  where  spinach  formerly 
grew  and  corn  has  taken  the  place  of  the  first  peas. 
Corn  was  of  good  flavor  and  size.    Occasional  appear- 


GOOD    FARM    GAEIDENS  55 

ances  of  smut  have  been  picked  off,  no  better  method 
presenting  itself. 

Onions  sold  for  a  good  price.  One-half  bushel 
were  selected  and  sent  to  the  county  fair  at  Greenfield. 
A  premium  of  two  dollars  was  awarded  them.  Two 
mammoth  squashes,  weighing  seventy-five  pounds 
apiece,  were  in  the  garden  September  30. 

Having  all  the  vegetables  our  family  could  eat, 
selling  some  and  giving  away,  my  experience  has 
proven  that  with  the  best  tools  and  fertilizers  and  a 
careful  method  of  cultivation,  an  enjoyable  and  profit- 
able garden  will  be  the  result. 

Most  of  the  peas  were  soaked  for  twenty-four 
hours  before  sowing  and  came  up  two  days  sooner 
than  those  not  soaked.  The  wheel  cultivator  was  used 
two  weeks  later,  throwing  the  dirt  from  the  rows. 

The  ground  was  not  firmed  after  planting  the 
seed,  as  Mr.  Campliell  believes  the  loose  soil  prevents 
excessive  evaporation  and  assists  the  seeds  to  come 
up  quickly. 

The  IVoodrnif  Pri.cc  Garden. — Some  look  upon 
the  home  garden  as  merely  a  plot  of  ground  in  which 
to  grow  vegetables  to  eat — a  place  that  produces  a  few 
good  things  through  lots  of  backache,  sore  fingers  and 
weeds.  Others  see  in  the  garden  a  place  for  study  and 
recreation,  and  the  drudgery  of  planting,  weeding  and 
hoeing  becomes  a  pleasure.  A  man  of  the  latter  type 
is  Charles  Pierson  Augur  of  New  Haven  county,  Con- 
necticut, who  won  the  first  special  prize  for  the  best 
report  of  a  garden  planted  with  Woodruff's  seeds.  His 
garden  comprised  four-fifths  of  an  acre  and  returned 
eighty-nine  dollars  and  seventy-one  cents  profit  over 
and  above  expenses. 

The  soil  was  a  heavy  loam  underlaid  with  slate, 
and  the  garden  was  divided  into  two  plots,  one  lying 
to  the  south  and  west  on  an  incline  and  the  other  at 


56  PRIZE     GARDENING 

the  foot  of  the  slope  on  nearly  level  ground.  It  was 
in  fair  condition  as  to  fertility,  as  each  year  previously 
for  five  years  some  ten  cords  per  acre  of  stable  manure 
had  been  applied,  and  on  the  greater  portion  there 
had  been  used  from  six  hundred  to  one  thousand 
pounds  per  acre  of  complete  fertilizer.  The  usual 
hand  tools  found  on  every  farm  were  used  and  in  addi- 
tion a  seed  drill  and  wheel  hoe.  Not  only  were  all  the 
commoner  vegetables  planted,  but  many  of  those  not 
usually  found  in  farmers'  gardens,  such  as  egg  plant, 
cauliflower,  kale,  kohl-rabi,  melons,  and  salsify,  and 
everything  in  great  abundance  and  variety.  Such 
extensive  plantings  were  made  for  the  sake  of  succes- 
sion and  for  testing  the  different  varieties.  Brief  notes 
were  kept  of  everything,  so  that  the  test  notes  are  of 
much  value  for  reference  and  as  a  guide  for  future 
planting. 

No  fancy  business  was  attempted  with  this  gar- 
den. It  was  such  as  any  farmer  can  have.  It  not  only 
returned  a  large  amount  of  the  best  kind  of  food, 
but  a  surplus  for  sale.  P>om  the  time  the  first  radishes 
were  ripe  in  early  June  there  was  never  a  day  when 
the  garden  did  not  give  enough  of  something  for  a 
meal  for  a  large  family.  The  work  of  caring  for  the 
garden  was  done  at  odd  spells,  and  it  was  done  and  not 
neglected.  An  hour  or  two  at  morning  or  night  with 
the  wheel  hoe  would  cultivate  a  large  space  while  the 
weeds  were  small,  and  frequent  cultivation  kept  the 
ground  clean  and  the  crops  growing  in  a  season  of 
almost  unprecedented  drouth. 

A  Practical  Success. — A  decidedly  business-like 
and  profitable  farm  garden  of  one  and  five-eighths 
acres  is  described  by  W.  K.  Cole,  Middlesex  county, 
Massachusetts,  eighth  Rawson  prize  winner.  His 
idea,  as  he  states,  was  to  show  from  actual  experience 
what  may  be  done  by  an  ordinary  farmer  with  the 


GOOD    FARM     GARDENS  57 

usual  tools  under  average  conditions  on  a  common 
farm.  The  soil  varied  from  dark,  heavy  loam  to  very 
light  gravel.  Most  of  the  crops  were  fertilized  with 
barn  manure  with  some  fertilizer  added.  There  were 
corn,  peas,  beans,  cabbage,  cauliflower,  squash,  pota- 
toes, beets  and  tomatoes.  The  methods  employed  were 
not  unusual,  but  were  hberal  and  thorough.  His 
account  describes  each  crop. 

Tomatoes  on  light  soil,  fairly  manured,  received 
also  two  handfuls  of  fertilizer  per  hill  at  setting,  also 
one-fifth  pound  nitrate  of  soda  after  fruit  was  formed. 
Sold  thirty-five  bushels  for  twenty  dollars  and  sixty- 
eight  cents  besides  eight  or  ten  bushels  wasted  for  lack 
of  market.  Cost  of  crop,  fifteen  dollars  and  eighty- 
eight  cents ;  profit,  four  dollars  and  eighty  cents. 

One-fifth  of  an  acre  planted  to  Early  Essex  sweet 
corn  with  four  hundred  pounds  fertilizer  appeared 
to  stand  the  drouth  very  well,  although  on  dry  run-out 
land.  A  trace  of  the  corn  took  a  two-dollar  prize  at 
the  county  fair,  and  the  crop  of  forage  was  very  heavy. 
Corn  and  forage  were  valued  at  thirty-three  dollars  and 
seventy-eight  cents ;  cost,  sixteen  dollars  and  thirty 
cents ;  profit,  seventeen  dollars  and  forty-eight  cents. 

Early  Roberts  potato,  four  square  rods,  proved 
earliest  of  all  varieties  tried  and  yielded  six  bushels. 
Rural  Blush  gave  a  light  yield.  Rural  New  Yorker 
and  Carmen  No.  3  gave  large  yields  of  large,  smooth, 
late-keeping  potatoes,  but  were  outyielded  by  old 
kinds  Hke  Clark's  No.  i.  Beauty  of  Hebron,  Pearl  of 
Savoy.  The  potatoes  won  eight  premiums  at  the  Essex 
county  fair. 

Writes  Mr.  Cole:  I  believe  in  liberal  manuring, 
deep  planting,  level  cultivation,  light  seeding,  prompt 
application  of  bug  juice  and  early  digging.  I  cut  the 
seed  one  eye  to  the  piece,  drop  in  furrows  six  inches 
deep  and  ten  inches  apart  in  the  furrow  and  turn  in 


58  PRIZE     GARDENING 

soil  enough  to  cover  the  seed,  using-  the  horse  hoe,  then 
strew  fertihzer  in  the  furrow  and  fill  up  even  with  the 
horse  hoe.  Go  over  the  piece,  if  wet,  with  brush,  har- 
row if  very  dry;  use  a  roller  or  smoother,  loaded,  to 
firm  down  the  earth.  This  piece  was  manured  at  the 
rate  of  six  cords  per  acre  plowed  in.  I  used  fertilizer 
at  the  rate  of  about  one  thousand  two  hundred  pounds 
per  acre. 

Early  cabbage,  nine  and  one-half  square  rods,  set 
out  May  i,  and  given  a  handful  of  fertilizer,  with 
another  handful  hoed  in  later,  yielded  twenty  barrels. 
Income,  twenty-five  dollars  and  sixty  cents ;  cost,  six- 
teen dollars  and  seventy-five  cents ;  net,  eight  dollars 
and  eighty-five  cents.  Seventeen  square  rods  of  early 
peas  produced  about  fifty  bushels  at  a  cost  of  twenty- 
eight  dollars  and  seventy-eight  cents  and  selling  for 
fifty  dollars  and  seventy-five  cents. 

About  one-sixth  acre  was  planted  to  Mohawk, 
Golden  Eye  Wax,  Goddard  and  Imperial  Horticultural 
beans,  the  first  planting  of  Mohawk  April  26.  They 
were  cultivated  three  times  and  hoed  once.  Shell  beans 
were  more  profitable  than  string.  Horticultural  were 
five  days  earlier  than  other  shell  beans.  The  whole 
crop,  forty-eight  bushels,  brought  forty-nine  dollars 
and  eight  cents  at  cost  of  twenty-nine  dollars  and 
forty-five  cents.  Profit,  nineteen  dollars  and  sixty- 
three  cents. 

Cabbages,  one-ninth  acre,  with  six  dollars  worth 
manure  and  two  dollars  worth  fertilizer,  were  set  May 
5,  cultivated  four  times  and  hoed  three  times  and  gave 
fifty-four  barrels  and  an  income  of  sixty-one  dollars 
and  forty-two  cents  at  cost  of  twenty-eight  dollars  and 
ninety-five  cents.  Net,  thirty-two  dollars  and  forty- 
seven  cents.  Red  cabbage  proved  most  profitable  and 
Savoy  least  profitable.  A  similar  area  of  cauliflower 
brought  fifty-one  dollars  and  seven  cents  at  cost  of 


6o  PRIZE     GARDENING 

thirty-seven  dollars  and  seventy-three  cents.  With 
both  of  the  above  crops  nitrate  of  soda  was  hoed  in 
during"  cultivation.  Winter  squashes,  planted  June  20, 
did  fairly  well  for  so  late,  being  a  second  crop  after 
beans  and  peas. 

Total  income  of  the  garden  was  four  hundred  and 
eighty-seven  dollars  and  fourteen  cents ;  manure, 
eighty-four  dollars  and  forty-four  cents;  seed  and 
plants,  fourteen  dollars  and  eighty-five  cents;  labor, 
one  hundred  and  ninety-two  dollars  and  seventy-fivq 
cents ;  interest  and  taxes,  two  dollars  and  twenty-eight 
cents ;  total  cost,  two  hundred  and  ninety-four  dollars 
and  thirty-two  cents ;  net,  one  hundred  and  ninety-two 
dollars  and  eighty-two  cents. 

A  Busy  Farmer's  Garden. — "  A  busy  farmer  can 
have  a  good  garden  if  he«will  only  make  the  effort," 
says  Oscar  R.  Widmer^  one  of  the  successful  contest- 
ants, whose  kitchen  garden  plot,  eighty-nine  by  one 
hundred  and  twenty  feet  in  size,  produced  thirty-two 
dollars  and  twelve  cents  worth  of  vegetables  at  a  cost 
of  sixteen  dollars  and  ninety  cents  for  labor,  seed  and 
fertilizer.  The  garden  was  of  a  gravelly  loam,  lying 
on  an  eastern  slope,  and  prior  to  1890  it  was  in  grass. 
Then  for  four  years  it  was  planted  to  corn  and  since 
1894  has  been  used  as  a  garden.  The  rows  were 
laid  out  the  long  way  of  the  plot  so  as  to  permit  of 
horse  cultivation,  and  no  hand  work  in  consequence 
was  done. 

Mr.  Widmer  adds :  "As  soon  as  possible  after 
planting,  the  cultivator  is  started  to  'nip  the  weeds  in 
the  bud'  as  it  were.  This  does  away  with  the  tedious 
hand  weeding  that  must  be  done  where  the  garden  is 
small  and  located  in  some  out-of-the-way  corner.  The 
work  is  mostly  done  in  leisure  moments  and  is  a  source 
of  great  pleasure,  irrespective  of  profit."  At  the  begin- 
ning of  operations  there  were  growing  in  the  garden 


GOOD     FARM     GARDENS  6 1 

four  rows  of  strawberries,  one  and  one-half  rows  of 
currants  and  half  a  row  of  raspberries.  The  currants 
gave  ninety-six  quarts,  while  the  others  were  just  com- 
ing into  bearing. 

Instead  of  using  brush  or  poultry  netting  for  peas, 
a  trellis  was  made  by  driving  heavy  posts  at  each  end 
of  the  row  and  stretching  No.  12  wire  at  top  and  bot- 
tom. The  end  posts  were  well  braced  and  lighter 
posts  put  in  every  eight  or  ten  feet.  Common  grocers' 
twine  was  woven  from  the  top  to  the  bottom  wire  and 
the  vines  clung  to  this.  After  plowing,  the  garden 
was  top-dressed  with  stable  manure  and  thoroughly 
harrowed  to  mix  and  fine  the  soil  and  manure.  Then 
the  clod  crusher  was  used  to  smooth  and  level  the  sur- 
face, after  which  it  was  marked  off  in  rows  as  straight 
as  possible,  two  feet  four  inches  apart.  The  Planet 
Jr  seed  drill  was  used  for  sowing  and  planting  every- 
thing but  corn  and  potatoes,  which  were  dropped  by 
hand  and  covered  with  a  common  hoe. 

The  first  planting  was  done  May  4,  when  onion 
sets,  peas  and  beans  were  put  in,  followed  the  next 
day  by  plantings  of  lettuce,  radish,  beets,  carrots,  kohl- 
rabi, turnips,  rutabaga,  sage  and  potatoes.  There  were 
also  raised  cucumbers,  squash,  sweet  corn,  celery, 
tomatoes,  peppers  and  cabbage.  The  illustration  gives 
a  good  idea  of  the  way  vegetables  will  grow  if  they 
receive  a  little  work  at  the  right  time. 

Hozv  to  Raise  the  Most  Possible  from  a  garden 
patch  forty  by  fifty  feet  was  the  problem  before  W.  P. 
Gray,  Westchester  county.  New  York,  a  five-dollar 
prize  winner.  He  tried  to  solve  it  by  planting  some 
very  late  second  crops,  but  concludes  that  another  year 
he  would  plant  nothing  after  August  i,  and  thinks  late 
planted  peas  and  beans  do  not  pay.  He  used  two  loads 
of  manure  and  two  hundred  pounds  fertilizer.  The 
garden  was  cultivated  with  a  wheel  hoe.     The  yield 


62  PRIZE    GARDENING 

was  five  bushels  beets,  twenty-five  quarts  peas,  two 
and  one-fourth  bushels  beans,  twenty  quarts  turnips, 
twenty-two  quarts  carrots  and  two  dollars  and  ten 
cents  worth  of  lettuce  and  parsley,  the  total  value  being 
fifteen  dollars  and  ninety-eight  cents.  The  crop  was 
produced  at  a  loss  of  about  eight  dollars,  largely 
because  of  labor  with  unsuccessful  second  crops.  The 
labor  bill  alone  amounted  to  eleven  dollars  and  twenty- 
one  cents. 

About  One-third  of  an  Acre  in  eastern  Massachu- 
setts, entered  by  L.  E.  Burnham,  won  a  five-dollar 
Rawson  special.  The  surplus  produce  w^as  sold  to 
summer  cottagers,  amounting  to  one-half  the  total 
value.  Income,  sixty-one  dollars  and  sixty-nine  cents ; 
cost,  forty-three  dollars  and  forty-seven  cents;  profit, 
eighteen  dollars  and  twenty-two  cents.  This  is  his 
first  garden,  and  he  thinks  he  could  do  better  by  deep 
plowing  and  more  liberal  manuring.  The  garden  was 
planted  in  straight  rows  with  a  good  assortment  and 
constant  succession  of  standard  vegetables.  The  value 
of  labor  at  fifteen  cents  per  hour  amounted  to  twelve 
dollars  and  twenty  cents  for  eighty-one  and  one-fourth 
hours,  a  sum  only  two-thirds  the  receipts  for  surplus 
products.  There  was  about  two  weeks'  work  in  May, 
one  in  June,  one  in  July,  two  in  August  and  two  in 
September.  Not  beginning  to  plant  until  May  i,  and 
doing  practically  all  the  cultivating  with  a  wheel  hoe, 
the  very  important  item  of  labor  was  much  reduced. 
It  would  seem  that  any  farmer  might  well  spare  eight 
days  to  be  thus  repaid,  both  in  cash  and  in  garden  food. 


CHAPTER  V 

THE     HOME     ACRE 

A  good  garden  is  a  source  of  pride,  delight  and 
money  profit  to  many  a  person  whom  circumstance  or 
inchnation  does  not  impel  to  make  gardening  a  leading 
specialty.  In  many  cases  only  a  small  area  is  planted 
and  the  produce  all  used  on  the  home  table.  Others 
have  a  surplus  for  sale  or  gift.  Many  of  these  home 
gardens  entered  in  the  contest  were  remarkable  for 
careful  methods  and  for  admirable  results. 

High  Grade  Gardening. — A  garden  conspicuous 
for  the  high  grade  of  its  products  and  a  winner  at  the 
country  fairs  was  managed  by  L.  E.  Dimock  of  Con- 
necticut, and  the  account  received  fifth  prize.  The 
soil  was  sandy  loam,  southeastern  slope,  had  been  six 
years  in  grass.  Farm  manure  of  various  kinds  was 
freely  used.  Deep,  thorough  tillage,  frequent  cultiva- 
tion and  the  use  of  mulch  were  features  of  the  system 
followed.  Seeds  were  usually  soaked  before  planting. 
Mulch  was  often  used.  Following  are  some  of  Mr. 
Dimock's  gardening  principles : 

Select  a  plot  of  ground  that  has  been  down  in  grass 
for  a  number  of  years,  as  weeds  are  less  troublesome 
than  in  a  piece  that  has  been  under  cultivation.  The 
soil  should  be  preferably  a  sandy  loam.  It  should 
have  a  gradual  slope  to  the  south  that  the  sun's  rays 
may  strike  it  more  direct  and  also  be  sheltered  in  a 
measure  from  the  cool  north  winds.  The  first  plow- 
ing should  be  done  in  September  of  the  year  previous, 
and  to  the  greatest  depth  possible,  as  deep-tilled  land 
suffers  much  less  from  drouth.     Stable  manure  spread 


64  PRIZE     GARDENING 

broadcast  at  the  rate  of  twelve  cords  per  acre  and 
thoroughly  worked  into  the  soil  to  its  full  depth  causes 
the  plants  to  send  their  roots  deep  down  and  thereby 
gather  moisture  and  nourishment  in  a  dry  time. 

Deep  cross  plowing  and  harrowing  after  the 
manure  has  been  spread  thoroughly  mixes  the  manure 
and  soil  and  gives  better  results  than  manuring  in  the 
hill  and  saves  a  great  amount  of  labor.  The  rows 
should  run  north  and  south  if  the  lay  of  the  land  will 
warrant  it.  Hills  near  together  and  rows  wide  apart 
let  in  the  sun's  rays  and  give  a  better  opportunity  for 


MR.  AND  MRS.  DIMOCK 


horse  cultivation.  Frequent  cultivation  makes  the 
crops  grow  fast  and  in  a  dry  season  is  good  irrigation. 
Cultivating  and  hoeing  in  the  early  morning  when  the 
dew  is  on  is  far  preferable  to  doing  it  in  the  heat  of 
the  day. 

All  the  common  vegetables  were  grown,  and 
receipts  comprise  numerous  items,  of  which  the  largest 
are  forty  dollars  for  cabbages,  seventeen  dollars  for 
melons  and  thirteen  dollars  for  beets.  Total  income 
from  the  quarter  acre,  one  hundred  and  seventy-six 
dollars  and  twenty-one  cents,  of  which  eighty-five  dol- 


THE     HOME     ACRE  6$ 

lars  and  ten  cents  was  profit.  The  aid  of  Mrs.  Dimock 
was  evidently  of  i^reat  value  in  the  care  of  the  ^s^arden. 
Their  photoi^^raphs  are  shown  herewith.  As  Mr. 
Dimock  writes,  both  are  "  fifty-five  years  of  age  and 
enjoy  good  health."  The  vegetables  received  much 
favorable  comment  through  the  press  and  otherwise 
wherever  exhibited. 

The  land  was  in  old  sod  and  was  plowed  deeply, 
harrowed  and  rolled,  and  then  cross  plowed,  harrowed 
and  rolled  twice  before  planting.  Three  cords  of 
stable  manure  w^ere  put  on  and  worked  in  and  some 
hen  manure  and  fertilizer  were  used  in  the  drill  for 
some  crops.  The  rows  were  made  wide  apart  and  the 
hills  near  together  to  allow  of  horse  cultivation  and 
the  sun  to  get  in  among  the  plants.  Twenty-one  kinds 
and  thirty-four  varieties  of  vegetables  were  grown, 
largely  for  home  use,  but  a  considcra1)le  surplus  was 
sold.  As  ]\Ir.  Dimock  is  quite  extensively  engaged  in 
poultrv  raising  he  grew  a  large  number  of  cabbage 
and  sold  nearly  twelve  thousand  young  plants. 

The  methods  employed  in  growing  some  of  the 
crops  were  quite  out  of  the  usual  line,  but  gave  very 
satisfactory  returns.  Thus,  in  growing  melons,  the 
earth  was  excavated  to  a  depth  of  two  feet  and  three 
feet  in  diameter  and  the  hole  filled  with  rotted  cow 
and  horse  manure  and  a  liberal  supply  of  hen  manure 
mixed  thoroughly  with  the  soil.  Ten  seeds,  after 
being  soaked  for  thirty-six  hours,  were  planted  in  each 
hill  and  covered  two  inches  deep.  A  box  two  feet 
square  and  twelve  inches  deep,  with  top  and  bottom 
removed,  was  placed  over  each  hill  and  left  until  the 
vines  were  ready  to  run.  This  protected  the  plants 
from  chilling  winds  and  they  grew  very  fast.  Two 
vines  only  were  allowed  in  each  hill  and  two  melons 
to  each  vine,  the  rest  being  picked  off  and  the  ends  of 
the  vines  pricked  after  the  melons  had  set.     Twelve 


THE     HOME     ACRE  67 

hills  gave  forty-eight  melons  which  weighed  from 
thirty  to  forty  pounds  each. 

In  planting  potatoes  Mr.  Dimock  proceeded  as 
follows :  May  2}^,  opened  two  drills  with  plow  six 
inches  deep  and  three  feet  apart.  Hen  manure  spread 
in  the  drill.  Drills  spaced  off  eighteen  inches  apart 
and  three  pieces  of  potato  with  two  eyes  on  a  piece 
were  placed  four  inches  apart  around  the  center  of 
each  mark,  eyes  up.  In  cutting  the  potatoes  nothing 
but  large  ones  were  used.  The  potato  was  first  cut 
crosswise  near  the  center ;  the  eye  end  is  used  for  cook- 
ing and  the  root  end  is  cut  in  pieces  of  two  eyes  each. 
The  potatoes  are  cut  ten  days  before  planting  and 
spread  on  a  floor  in  a  light  place.  This  causes  the 
cut  to  dry  or  sear  over  and  the  sprout  will  slowly  start. 

This  method  gives  strong  and  healthy  stalks, 
and  such  stalks  are  the  ones  that  produce  first-class 
potatoes.  Experimenting  with  the  seed  and  the  root 
end,  with  the  same  treatment  the  row  planted  from 
the  root  end  produced  one-fourth  more  potatoes  and  of 
much  larger  size.  A  preparation  called  *'  Bug  Death  " 
is  far  superior  to  paris  green  for  the  potato  bug.  One 
application  when  the  dew  is  on  is  enough  for  the  sea- 
son, as  it  adheres  tenaciously  to  the  vine.  One-half 
peck  of  potatoes  planted  as  above  yielded  five  hundred 
and  fifty-two  pounds  at  harvest. 

The  garden  was  a  highly  profitable  one  in  many 
ways.  Mr.  Dimock  made  a  large  exhibit  of  vegetables 
at  his  local  fair  and  captured  first  prize.  The  prod- 
ucts from  this  quarter  acre,  sold  and  consumed,  were 
valued  at  one  hundred  and  forty-six  dollars  and 
twenty-one  cents,  while  the  cost  for  labor,  seed  and 
fertilizer  to  produce  them  was  sixty-one  dollars  and 
eleven  cents,  leaving  the  handsome  profit  of  eighty- 
five  dollars  and  ten  cents.  The  home  of  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Dimock  is  a  typical  Connecticut  homestead.     There  is 


THE     HOME     ACRE  69 

a  large  commodious  house  with  ell,  a  barn  forty  by 
seventy  feet,  with  eighteen-foot  posts  and  a  nine-foot 
basement,  and  a  poultry  house  twelve  by  one  hundred 
and  forty  feet,  divided  in  ten-foot  sections.  Each  pen 
contains  twenty  fowls  and  the  house,  which  has  an 
alley  at  the  back,  is  built  in  a  unique  manner.  The 
farm  contains  one  hundred  acres  and  is  pleasantly 
situated. 

The  Garden  of  a  Hustler. — Accounts  of  gardens 
in  the  semi-arid  parts  of  the  prairie  states  show  that 
a  good  supply  of  vegetables  can  be  produced  without 
irrigation,  although  the  drawbacks  are  considerable. 
One  of  the  best  gardens  under  such  conditions  is 
described  by  A.  T.  Giauque,  Nebraska,  third  regular 
prize  winner.  His  plot  of  less  than  one-seventh  acre 
gave  him  produce  worth  about  forty-two  dollars,  from 
which  his  expenses,  excluding  such  items  as  photo- 
graphs, etc.,  pertaining  exclusively  to  the  contest,  left 
him  a  profit  of  tw^enty  dollars  and  fifty-four  cents. 
The  illustration  shows  the  garden  and  homestead  with 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Giauque  on  duty  among  the  vegetables. 
Their  several  assistants  are  seen  in  the  carriage  and 
the  doorway  of  the  house.  Besides  the  garden,  the 
Giauque  family  managed  two  hundred  and  seventy- 
seven  acres  of  farm  crops,  with  the  help  of  a  hired  man. 

The  fresh  prairie  soil  was  so  rich  that  manure  was 
not  wanted.  The  plot  was  enclosed  w^ith  w'oven  slat 
fencing  at  a  cost  of  twenty  dollars.  Soil  w^as  made 
very  fine  with  harrow  and  rake.  Cultivation  was 
thorough  and  frequent,  much  of  the  work  being  done 
with  wheel  hoes.  This  thorough  and  frequent  culture 
seems  to  be  the  main  difference  between  Mr.  Giauque's 
garden  and  the  numerous  unsuccessful  gardens  of 
the  dry  regions. 

Writing  June  i,  1901,  Mr.  Giauque  says:  I 
mulched  strawl^erries,  parsnips,  grapevines  and  shrub- 


THE     HOME     ACRE  71 

bery  with  rye  straw  last  winter,  and  I  now  have  a 
rank  crop  of  rye  to  contend  with.  Com  fodder  or 
prairie  hay  would  be  better. 

I  have  learned  that  wire  netting  for  a  garden 
fence  is  a  delusion  and  a  snare. 

I  am  convinced  that  a  person,  if  the  department 
of  agriculture  persists  in  flooding  him  with  free  seeds, 
would  better  burn  than  to  plant  them. 

Planted  in  Long  Rozcs. — A  large  and  productive 
home  garden  was  described  by  Miss  Edith  Holton, 
\>rmont.  One  acre  of  a  newly  set  orchard  was 
dressed  with  five  cords  manure  and  six  dollars  worth 
of  fertilizer.  The  soil  was  excellent  for  a  dry  season, 
being  strong,  heavy  and  inclined  to  wetness  in  spots. 
The  garden  and  trees  were  hoed  five  times  and  culti- 
vated three  or  four  times.  Value  of  produce  was  one 
hundred  and  twenty-six  dollars  and  fifty-three  cents, 
of  which  the  largest  items  were  thirty-three  dollars 
for  fifty-five  bushels  early  potatoes  and  forty  dollars 
for  one  hundred  bushels  turnips.  The  account 
received  a  five-dollar  award.     Writes  Miss  Holton : 

I  would  especially  recommend  the  system  of 
planting  everything  in  long  rows  so  that  garden  and 
field  products  can  be  cultivated  at  one  time.  Plants 
of  various  kinds  can  be  set  between  the  garden  rows 
at  the  last  cultivation,  so  that  no  space  is  lost.  I  like 
also  the  plan  of  planting  squashes  among  early  pota- 
toes, although  they  are  somewhat  in  the  way  when 
digging  potatoes.  Striped  bugs  and  squash  bugs  do 
not  trouble  so  much  and  they  get  along  out  of  the 
way  of  early  frost. 

A  Small  Farm  Garden  entered  by  Dora  Dietrick, 
Pennsylvania,  received  one  of  the  regular  five-dollar 
prizes.  Receipts  were  ninety-five  dollars  and  seventy- 
two  cents.  Cost,  twenty-two  dollars  and  twenty-five 
cents.     The   seed  bed   was   somewhat   unusual   for  a 


THE     HOME     ACRE  73 

farm,  being  intermediate  between  a  hotl)cd  and  cold 
frame.  The  g-roimd  inside  was  slioveled  out  and  four 
or  five  inches  well-rotted  barnyard  manure  put  in  and 
covered  with  three  inches  of  rich  soil.  Sash  were  put 
on  two  days  before  planting,  to  warm  the  soil.  Plants 
of  cabbage,  tomato,  lettuce,  pepper,  cauliflower  and 
cucumber  were  started  in  this  bed.  The  work  of  this 
garden  was  done  by  women  and  the  produce  sold  by 
them  to  customers  on  their  butter  route.  Area  of  gar- 
den was  about  one-fourth  acre. 


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A  GARDEN  IN  LONG  ROWS 


A  Very  Luxuriant  Home  Garden  was  reported  b\ 
Miss  Barbara  lirown,  Indiana,  receiving  a  prize  of 
five  dollars.  The  location  was  the  site  of  an  old  poultry 
house  and  had  also  been  used  for  a  chip  yard,  making 
a  very  porous,  fertile  soil.  The  area  is  about  three  thou- 
sand square  feet  and  one  load  of  manure  was  applied 
the  preceding  winter.  The  contestant  did  all  the  work 
but  plowing  and  manuring.  Flowers  were  grown 
along  the  fence  borders,  sweet  peas  and  vines  being 
trained  to  the    fences.     The    value    of    products    was 


74  PRIZE    GARDENING 

ten  dollars  and  forty-five  cents ;  expenses,  five  dollars 
and  four  cents.  Miss  Brown  considered  the  work 
very  enjoyable. 

A  Good  Garden  was  kept  b^  Mrs.  G.  F.  McCluer, 
Mississippi,  and  the  account  received  one  of  the  smaller 
awards.  Vegetables  enough  were  sold  from  the  three- 
fourths  acre  to  just  about  balance  the  cost  of  labor  and 
supplies,  leaving  as  net  profit  what  vegetables  were 
used  by  the  family.  Total  income  was  sixty-three 
dollars  and  thirty-four  cents,  and  cost  twenty-one  dol- 
lars and  seventy-eight  cents.  The  land  was  valued  at 
fifteen  dollars.  Labor  was  also  cheap ;  five  cents  per 
hour  for  man_,  four  cents  for  woman,  two  and  one- 
half  cents  for  boys  and  ten  cents  for  teams.  Among 
the  most  satisfactory  crops  were  potatoes,  sweet  corn, 
melons  and  cucumbers.  Planting  began  March  i,  but 
the  date  proved  too  early  for  a  backward  season.  The 
first  freeze  came  November  i,  making  what  would 
seem  to  a  northern  gardener  a  very  long  growing 
season. 

Fruit  and  Vegetables  were  abundant  in  the  prize 
garden  of  John  Tye,  Minnesota,  and  yielded  him  prod- 
uce worth  ninety-seven  dollars  and  fifty-one  cents  at  a 
cost  of  thirty-three  dollars  and  two  cents,  the  area 
being  about  one-fifth  of  an  acre.  The  ordinary  gar- 
den tools  were  used  and  a  wheel  hoe.  The  land  seems 
well  suited  to  fruit.  One  of  the  illustrations  in  Chap- 
ter XVI  shows  a  child  holding  a  prolific  branch  of 
currants  which  had  been  accidentally  broken  off.  An- 
other view  herewith  shows  the  thrifty  bushes  growing 
beside  the  fence,  the  new  growth  having  been  cut  back 
about  a  foot  to  increase  fruitfulness.  To  drive  off 
currant  worms,  hellebore  was  dusted  on  through  a 
homemade  shaker  made  from  a  can  with  holes  punched 
in  the  bottom,  using  one-half  pound  hellebore  to  one 
quart  flour.     A  mixture  of  insect  powder  and  helle- 


THE     HOME    ACRE 


75 


bore  was  an  effective  dose  for  cabbage  worms,  taking 
of  each  substance  equal  parts  and  diluting  with  four 
times  the  bulk  of  flour. 

A  Home  Farm  Garden  which  yielded  the  family 
supply  of  fruit  and  green  stuff  at  a  net  profit  of  thirty- 
nine  dollars  and  eighty-eight  cents  was  described  by 
A.  P.  Hitchcock  of  New  York.  This  grower  was  for- 
tunate in  having  little  trouble  with  insects  or  drouth. 
Five  hills   of   cucumbers   vielded  over  three   bushels, 


A  GARDEN  SITE  IX  THE  MINNESOTA   FOREST 


mostly  of  pickling  size.  Every  cabbage,  of  which 
there  were  five  varieties,  made  a  head,  and  from  forty- 
five  cauliflower  plants  there  were  forty-seven  heads, 
as  some  of  the  stumps  sent  out  a  second  crop  of  sprouts. 
Strazi'bcrrics  and  other  fruits  were  the  most 
important  products  of  the  Rawson  five-dollar  prize 
garden  described  by  C.  R.  Knapp,  Connecticut.  Oper- 
ations were  conducted  at  a  loss,  owing  to  rather  heavy 
charges  for  labor  at  twenty  cents  per  hour,  and  to  the 
fact  that  the  bearing  strawberry  bed  was  an  old  one, 


76 


PRIZE    GARDENING 


while  the  new-set  beds  were  not  yet  in  bearing-.  Mr. 
Knapp  works  in  a  shop  from  half-past  six  to  six 
o'clock,  and  tends  his  garden  evenings  and  holidays. 
Income  was  one  hundred  and  seventy-nine  dollars  and 
twenty-five  cents.  Cost,  one  hundred  and  ninety-three 
dollars  and  eighteen  cents.  Loss,  thirteen  dollars  and 
ninety-three  cents. 


MR.  TYE'S  CURRANT  BUSHES  AND  I.ATE  TURNIPS 

A  Natural  Garden. — One  of  the  few  eastern  con- 
testants not  complaining  of  injury  from  dry  weather 
w^as  C.  E.  Lord  of  Connecticut,  whose  garden  was  on 
light,  rich  loam,  a  level  spot  forty  feet  below  the  brow 
of  a  hill.  Subsoil  was  gravelly.  The  garden  was  evi- 
dently one  of  nature's  choice  locations ;  fertile,  springy, 
valley  land,  but  naturally  well  drained.  Crops  grew 
to  perfection  and  some  took  premiums  at  the  county 
fair.  From  the  fifteen  hundred  square  feet  Mr.  Lord 
took  vegetables  worth  ten  dollars  and  eighty-one  cents, 
sold  at  retail  prices,  but  with  the  liberal  discount  of 


THE     HOME     ACRE 


n 


thirty  per  cent  charged  off  for  selhng.  Expenses  were 
heavy,  the  work  bein.c^  mostly  done  by  hand  tools.  For 
fertilizer  was  used  a  barrel  of  ashes  and  ni^^ht  soil 
valued  at  two  dollars  and  twenty  cents.  Total  cost, 
seven  dollars  and  ninety-five  cents.  The  account 
received  a  five-dollar  award. 

A  Farm  Garden  Patch  of  less  than  half  an  acre 
returned  Charles  Coolidge  of  New  York,  a  Bowker 


.^OML  Ol-   MU.    iVK'^  CRUPb  AND    r<  )<)I.S 

five-dollar  prize  winner,  the  sum  of  forty-five  dollars 
and  seventy-nine  cents  at  a  cost  of  twenty-four  dollars 
and  fifty-nine  cents.  In  addition,  Mr.  Coolidge  thinks 
the  land  was  put  in  condition  to  yield  twice  as  much 
the  following-  year.  It  could  be  made  more  profitable, 
he  says,  by  putting  in  what  one  thinks  would  sell  best 
in  the  local  market.  He  believes  also  that  the  land 
should  have  been  plowed  in  the  fall  and  replowed 
in  spring. 


CHAPTER  VI 

ON     HIGH-PRICED    LAND 

Gardeners  in  town  or  city  are  handicapped  by 
scarcity  of  good  land  and  suitable  labor,  but  their 
advantages  in  the  direction  of  ready  markets,  plenty  of 
manure  and  comparative  isolation  from  insects  and 
other  pests,  have  often  enabled  them  to  show  a  hand- 
some profit.  Some  of  the  most  successful  and  best 
paying  gardens  entered  in  the  contest  were  in  towns 
or  suburbs,  or  even  on  city  house  lots. 

A  City  Man's  Ga?'den. — One  of  these  gardens, 
which  made  a  good  showing  on  high-priced  land,  was 
described  by  Mr.  J.  B.  Hauck  of  Suffolk  county,  Mas- 
sachusetts, a  prominent  prize  winner  and  a  gentleman 
who  has  made  amateur  gardening  his  study  for  years. 
The  plot  of  ground  upon  which  was  the  garden  was 
bought  fifteen  years  ago  at  a  cost  of  ten  cents  per 
square  foot.  It  is  located  upon  a  commanding  site  in 
one  of  the  suburbs  of  Boston.  The  garden  is  divided 
in  two  parts,  separated  by  a  street.  On  the  terrace 
are  planted  twelve  varieties  of  grapes,  which  are  being 
trained  over  an  arbor.  Scattered  about  the  place  are 
apple,  pear,  plum,  peach,  apricot,  cherry,  chestnut  and 
mulberry  trees  which  are  just  coming  into  bearing, 
and  have  great  promise. 

The  lower  garden  comprises  four  thousand  six 
hundred  and  fifty  square  feet,  most  of  which  has  been 
cultivated  by  Mr.  Hauck  for  thirteen  years,  who  says : 
"  It  is  still  my  hobby,  my  pride.  It  is  situated  on  a 
gentle,  sunny  slope,  gaining  all  the  moisture  from  the 
hill  above.     The  soil  is  dark,  mellow  and  rich,  with  a 


ON     IIiriH-PRICED     LAND 


19 


clay  bottom,  and  through  years  of  cuhivation  ahnost 
free  from  stones  and  noxious  weeds."  The  tools  used 
comprised  a  lot  of  miscellaneous  garden  implements, 
and  a  seed  drill  and  a  combined  wheel  hoe  and 
cultivator. 

"  I  believe  in  raising  as  many  different  varieties  of 
vegetables  as  my  limited  space  permits.     It  has  been 


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A  WELL-AKRANGED  IIOUSE-LOT 


customary  w^ith  me  for  several  years  to  use  barnyard 
manure  and  fertilizers  alternately,  so  in  November, 
1898,  after  clearing  the  garden,  a  good  layer  of  manure 
and  an  application  of  lime  were  plowed  under. 

"  Every  inch  of  ground  is  utilized.  As  soon  as  one 
crop  disappears  another  one  makes  its  appearance  and 


8o  PRIZE     GARDENING 

takes  its  place.  This  enables  me  to  always  have  some- 
thing new  for  the  table  and  plenty  of  it."  Water  was 
supplied  for  irrigation  during  dry  weather,  by  rigging 
up  an  old  rotary  pump  and  hose  and  connecting  with 
the  cistern.  Bordeaux  mixture  was  used  for  spraymg 
tomatoes,  beans  and  other  plants  to  prevent  rust  and 
blight,  and  a  little  paris  green  was  added  to  it  for  pota- 
toes. Freedom  from  cutworms  was  attributed  to  the 
use  of  lime  and  plowing  in  the  fall,  as  an  adjoining 
garden  was  badly  troubled.  A  row  of  old  bean  vines 
were  left  as  bait  for  green  worms,  and  cabbage  plants 
planted  near  by  escaped.  Squash  vine  borers  were 
removed  with  a  knife  by  cutting  open  the  vine,  length- 
wise, where  they  appeared.  The  vine  was  then  care- 
fully bandaged  with  a  wet  rag  and  a  fair  yield  obtained. 
The  bordeaux-paris  green  mixture  used  on  potatoes 
proved  fatal  to  egg  plants,  but  hellebore  proved  quite 
satisfactory  for  keeping  off  the  potato  bugs. 

One  hotbed,  three  by  six  feet,  was  used  in  which 
to  start  the  seeds  of  early  vegetables.  Plantings  were 
made  in  the  open  ground  as  soon  as  the  weather  per- 
mitted and  were  continued  at  intervals  throughout  the 
season  whenever  there  was  a  vacant  spot  in  the  garden. 
The  following  varieties  of  vegetables,  mostly  in  five 
and  ten-cent  packets,  were  planted :  Pole  and  wax 
beans,  beets,  borecole,  kale,  cabbage,  carrots,  cauli- 
flower, celery,  celeriac,  corn,  cucumber,  corn  salad, 
endive,  egg  plant,  kohl-rabi,  lettuce,  muskmelon,  onions, 
peppers,  peas,  salsify,  radish,  spinach,  squash,  tomato, 
turnip,  rutabagas,  escarole,  chives,  shallot,  parsley, 
sweet  and  Irish  potatoes  and  nearly  a  dozen  different 
kinds  of  sweet  herbs. 

The  garden  was  planted  as  shown  by  the  cuts. 
In  the  larger  garden  tomatoes  followed  peas,  turnips 
the  wax  beans,  early  lettuce  for  fall  use  took  the  place 
of  Refugee  beans.     Corn  salad  succeeded  lettuce.    The 


ON     HIGH-PRICED     LAND  8l 

spinach  was  followed  by  cabbage,  while  turnips,  beets, 
carrots,  celery  and  spinach  gave  a  second  crop  in  the 
plot  occupied  by  Gradus  peas  and  Emperor  William 
beans.  Winter  radishes  came  after  Telephone  peas, 
Paris  Golden  celery  was  planted  in  between  the  hills 
of  Stowell's  Evergreen  corn,  and  gave  a  good  crop  for 
home  use  without  blanching.  The  plot  of  early  corn 
was  sown  to  turnips.  The  hotbed  was  used  during 
the  late  fall  and  winter  to  store  some  of  the  hardy 
vegetal)les  and  the  latter  part  of  October  there  were 
placed  in  it  some  endive,  escarole,  celeriac,  and  the 
remaining  space  was  filled  up  by  transplanting  leeks, 
chives  and  parsley. 

The  value  of  the  garden  and  the  cost  of  the  same 
are  shown  in  the  following  table : 

IXCOMK 

Products   for   home   use $54-24 

Products    sold 65.75 

Products  given  away 11.36 

Plants    sold 375 

Plants  given  away 3.45 

Total     $138.55 

EXPENSES 

Plowing  and  harrowing $3-00 

Manure     2.00 

Seeds     10.00 

Insecticides    1.20 

Labor    42.00 

Total   $58.70 

Profit    7985 

Mr.  Hauck,  who  is  retired,  is  an  agricultural  col- 
lege graduate  and  makes  his  garden  his  hobby.  Owing 
to  the  effects  of  a  sunstroke  he  is  unable  to  do  any 
work  during  the  heat  of  the  day  and  so  works  from 
daylight  until  sunrise,  and  from  sunset  until  dark.  He 
says :    ''  The  amount  of  pleasure  and  comfort  I  derive 


ON     HIGH-PRICED    LAND  83 

from  my  early  rising- 1  never  experienced  before.  The 
bracing-  and  invigorating  air  soon  proved  very  bene- 
ficial to  my  condition  and  I  recovered  and  gained 
l-ealth  and  strength  almost  as  fast  as  the  crops  grew 
m  the  garden." 

The  First  Price  Garden. — The  winner  of  the  first 
of  the  regular  prizes,  submitting  an  account  hard  to 
excel  for  clearness  and  discriminating  completeness, 
gained    his    success    under    the    severe    handicaps    of 


SOME  JULY  PRIZE  VEGETABLES 

broken  health  and  the  failure  of  important  crops.  Mr. 
B.  S.  Higley,  Mahoning  county,  Ohio,  is  sixty-two 
years  old,  and  disabled  from  practice  as  a  lawyer  by 
disease  contracted  in  the  civil  war.  Although  able  to 
perform  but  little  work,  he  finds  outdoor  life  good  for 
his  health.  His  garden  is  city  building  land  of  high 
valuation.  The  garden  that  year  showed  no  profit; 
expenses  of  about  one  hundred  and  twenty  dollars 
being  offset  by  crops  of  practically  the  same  value, 
but  the  lack  of  cash  gain  was  not  due  to  any  lack  of 


84  PRIZE     GARDENING 

skill,  intelligence  and  system  on  the  owner^s  part.  His 
methods  with  various  crops  are  well  worth  noting: 

Starting  Seeds. — I  get  wooden  boxes  about  one 
foot  square  and  three  inches  deep  and  bore  holes  in 
the  bottom  of  each  for  drainage.  I  place  a  handful  of 
small  broken  stones  over  each  auger  hole  and  then 
nearly  fill  the  boxes  with  potting  soil.  Potting  soil  is 
prepared  as  follows :  Every  spring  before  filling  my 
hotlDcds  with  manure  I  place  in  the  bottom  of  the 
smaller  one  layers  of  sods,  grass  side  down,  to  the 
depth  of  ten  to  twelve  inches.  Over  this  I  put  fresh 
manure.  In  the  fall  1  fork  this  over  several  times, 
then  sift  and  barrel  the  entire  contents  and  store  in  a 
dry  place.  This  soil  mixed  with  one-third  sifted  sand 
constitutes  what  I  call  potting  soil.  I  use  it  for  pot- 
ting bulbs  or  plants  and  for  starting  seeds  that  are 
not  sown  in  the  open  ground. 

After  filling  the  boxes  nearly  full  with  the  potting 
soil,  I  firm  and  level  the  soil  with  a  block  or  brick,  so 
that  the  boxes  are  two-thirds  full.  Upon  this  I  drop 
seed  thinly  in  rows,  each  kind  in  a  box  by  itself,  tack- 
ing the  seed  envelope  stating  the  name  of  the  variety 
upon  the  edge  of  the  box.  Then  I  gently  sift  fine  pot- 
ting soil  over  the  seed,  covering  aster  seed  one-thirty- 
second  of  an  inch.  Then  I  firm  the  soil  again  lightly. 
For  watering  I  employ  one  of  three  methods,  which- 
ever may  be  most  convenient  at  the  time.  The  first 
is  to  place  the  box  in  water  not  quite  deep  enough  to 
run  over  the  seed  box.  There  the  box  remains  until 
the  soil  is  saturated  up  to  the  seed,  when  it  is  taken  out 
and  water  drained  off.  The  second  way,  after  the  soil 
is  firmed,  and  before  planting  the  seed,  sprinkle  over 
dry  soil  and  do  not  firm  at  all.  The  third  way,  after 
the  seed  is  sown  and  the  soil  firmed,  place  a  coarse 
cloth  over  the  box  and  sprinkle  with  water  until  the 
soil   is  moist.     I  fancy  the  second  method  the  best, 


ON     HIGH-PRICED     LAND 


85 


since  the  first  is  likely  to  render  the  soil  too  wet,  and 
the  latter  not  wet  enough.  The  seeds  being  planted 
and  watered,  the  boxes  are  covered  with  panes  of  glass 
and  put  in  my  cold  frame.  I  do  it  as  a  convenient  way 
to  protect  the  seeds  and  plants  from  any  belated  frosts. 
I  never  permit  the  soil  to  become  dry,  until  the  plants 
appear.     Then    I   remove   the   glass,'  keep   the   boxes 


GARDEN  ARRANGEMENT  OF  A  CITY  BACK  VAR 


clear  of  weeds,  water  regularly,  and  the  plants  grow 
like  weeds. 

The  foregoing  directions  apply  to  all  seeds  which 
one  may  desire  to  start  in  boxes,  especially  where  one 
has  no  hotbed,  the  only  change  being  the  deepness 
of  planting.  The  larger  the  seeds,  the  deeper  they 
should  be  covered. 


86  PRIZE     GARDENING 

Next  year  I  propose  to  harrow  with  a  homemade 
clod  breaker  drawn  by  horses.  The  implement  will 
resemble  a  five  by  six-foot  section  of  a  roof,  only  the 
shingles  will  be  two  by  ten-inch  plank  spiked  upon 
two  by  four  scantling.  In  use  the  lap  side  of  the 
shingles  is  drawn  against  the  clods,  the  driver  riding 
on  the  breaker.  For  smoothing  and  leveling  hitch  the 
team  on  the  other  end.  This  will  be  done  in  the  fore- 
noon, and  I  will  put  force  enough  on  in  the  afternoon 
to  finish  any  raking  necessary  thereafter.  With  the 
peculiar  soil  I  have,  this  will  make  my  garden  as  mel- 
low as  a  wood-ash  heap.  My  experience  is  that  such 
a  condition  of  ground  at  the  outstart  means  mellow, 
light  soil  the  whole  season,  provided  the  soil  gets 
prompt,  regular  and  thorough  cultivation  thereafter. 
My  land  if  left  for  twenty-four  hours  after  harrowing 
is  sure  to  be  full  of  small  lumps,  which  can  only  be 
broken  by  pounding. 

I  have  concluded  to  try  using  only  artificial  fer- 
tilizers on  my  garden  in  the  future.  I  have  to  buy  all 
my  manures  anyway.  Such  stable  manure  as  1  can 
get  is  not  well  rotted,  and  is  so  rich  in  tin  cans,  broken 
glass,  crockery,  and  all  manner  of  rubbish,  all  of  which 
I  must  bury  or  hire  hauled  to  the  city  dump,  and  is 
also  impregnated  with  grass  and  weed  seeds,  that  I 
am  out  of  patience  with  the  use  of  such  manure.  If  I 
find  that  artificial  fertilizers  are  insufficient  of  them- 
selves I  will  supplement  them  with  crimson  clover  sown 
early  in  the  fall  and  plowed  under  in  the  spring. 

The  owner  is  the  best  laborer  on  garden  or  farm, 
or  at  least  ought  to  be.     Hired  help  lacks  interest. 

I  plant  cabbage,  cauliflower,  peppers,  tgg  plant, 
etc.,  in  this  way :  With  a  slightly  sharpened  stick,  an 
old  broom  handle  for  instance,  I  punch  a  hole  six  or 
eight  inches  deep.  I  insert  the  plant  a  trifle  deeper 
than  I  propose  to  set  it,  then  carefully  fill  the  hole  with 


ON    llIGll-i'RICED    LAND  87 

fine  dry  soil  to  within  an  inch  of  the  surface.  Then  I 
very  gently  raise  the  plant  one-half  inch  to  adjust  the 
tiny  roots  in  the  soil.  I  fill  the  hole  with  water,  then 
complete  the  filling  of  the  hole  with  the  fine,  dry  soil, 
and  firm  hard.  I  never  lose  a  plant  from  wihing; 
indeed,  the  growth  is  hardly  checked.  The  secret  of 
transplanting  is  a  generous  application  of  water  to 
moisten  the  roots  and  compact  the  soil  around  them, 
and  then  to  cover  this  wet  soil  with  dry  to  hinder 
evaporation. 

I  transplant  tomatoes  in  this  way :  With  a  garden 
trowel  I  dig  a  trench  an  inch  deep  next  the  stake, 
and  sloping  from  two  to  two  and  one-half  inches  at  the 
end  away  from  the  stake ;  trenches  from  six  inches  to  a 
foot  or  more  long,  according  to  the  size  of  the  plants. 
I  pinch  ofl"  close  tn  the  stem  all  the  leaves  of  the  plant 
except  those  at  the  extreme  end,  lay  the  plant  in  the 
trench,  top  toward  the  stake,  fill  the  trench  half  full  of 
dry  soil  and  pour  in  a  half  gill  of  water.  As  soon  as 
this  settles  away,  I  fill  the  trench  with  dry  soil  and  firm 
with  my  foot.  Only  three  or  four  inches  of  the  plant 
remains  above  the  ground,  the  root  and  naked  stem 
being  buried.  I  prefer  this  way  of  planting  because 
roots  will  shoot  out  all  along  the  buried  stem  and  thus 
give  more  root  surface  for  the  future  support  of  the 
plant.  I  do  not  care  for  specially  large,  stocky  plants. 
The  plants  set  out  to-day  were  not  over  eight 
inches  long. 

I  prefer  to  transplant  late  in  the  afternoon  in  very 
dry  weather.  Pour  water  into  the  trenches  as 
described  and  covering  wath  dry  soil  prevents  evapo- 
ration of  water  applied  to  the  roots.  My  plants  never 
wilt  and  I  never  lose  any  from  transplanting.  My 
plants  are  taken  directly  from  the  hotbed  and  planted 
where  they  are  to  grow.  I  never  transplant  but  once. 
I  do  not  care  for  short,  stocky  plants ;  long,  spindling 


88  PRIZE     GARDENING 

plants  such  as  grow  in  a  hotbed  too  thickly  sown, 
answer  my  plan  of  planting  better  than  short,  stocky 
plants.  No  one  succeeds  better  in  all  my  circle  of 
acquaintances  in  growing  tomatoes  than  I  do. 

I  always  trim  tomatoes  to  one  stalk  and  tie  to 
stakes.  The  trimming  consists  in  pinching  or  cutting 
off  all  branches.  These  branches  start  from  the  main 
stalk  directly  above  the  leaves.  The  fruit  stems  or 
branches  start  from  the  main  stalk  about  midway 
between  the  leaves,  and  of  course  should  not  be  cut 
off.  Any  shoots  starting  from  the  roots  or  near  the 
ground  must  be  removed.  Grow  strictly  to  one  stalk. 
It  is  necessary  to  trim  and  tie  four  or  five  times  during 
the  season.     Plants  may  grow  five  or  six  feet  tall. 

When  they  reach  the  top  of  the  stakes,  cut  off 
the  end  of  the  main  stalk  and  permit  no  higher  growth. 
By  proper  care  in  the  work,  tomato  vines  can  be  twined 
around  the  stakes  and  tied  so  as  to  keep  every  fruit 
stem  and  the  fruit  entirely  away  from  the  stakes.  This 
is  the  best  culture  for  tomatoes.  They  grow  larger, 
ripen  earlier  and  better  than  when  grown  in  any  other 
way.  For  poles  I  buy  refuse  oak  strips  from  the 
planing  mill,  one  by  two  inches,  saw  them  in  six-foot 
lengths,  sharpen  one  end  and  drive  the  stakes  solidly 
into  the  ground  before  planting  the  tomatoes.  In  the 
fall  I  pull  up  the  stakes  and  store  them  away  for  the 
next  season.  Thus  treated  the  stakes  will  last  for 
several  years. 

I  am  too  lazy  to  work  with  any  but  sharp,  bright 
tools.  I  never  permit  anyone  besides  myself  to  use 
any  of  my  wheel  hoe  implements.  As  soon  as  any 
one  of  these  is  no  longer  in  use,  that  particular  imple- 
ment is  taken  to  the  storeroom,  wiped  clean  with  a 
rag  and  put  in  its  place.  This  is  done  although  that  very 
same  tool  is  to  be  taken  out  and  returned  several  times 
in  the  same  day.    The  same  rule  is  invariably  followed 


ON     IIIGII-PRICED     LAND  89 

as  to  the  use  and  care  of  every  garden  tool  I  own. 
They  are  never  left  lying  about,  never  permitted  to 
get  wet  and  are  wiped  off  carefully  after  each  using 
of  them. 

As  no  hired  help  can  be  trusted  in  this  respect, 
I  never  fail  at  the  close  of  each  day  to  examine  my 
collection  of  tools,  hunting  up  any  that  are  missing 
and  cleaning  such  as  need  it.  I  cleaned  all  my  wheel 
hoe  implements  thoroughly,  greased  the  bright  parts 
with  bacon  rind  and  stored  away  the  whole  in  a  dry 
place  for  the  winter.  I  shall  pursue  exactly  the  same 
course  with  all  my  other  garden  tools  as  soon  as  I  am 
through  using  them  for  the  season.  As  a  result  I  shall 
find  everything  in  fine  order  for  work  the  next  spring. 
It  is  easier  and  cheaper  to  keep  tools  in  good  order  in 
this  w^ay  than  it  is  to  put  them  in  order  by  hours  of 
hard  work  when  the  tools  are  needed. 

To  work  with  rusty,  foul,  dull  tools  nearly  doubles 
the  labor,  besides  hindering  the  progress  of  the  job  in 
hand.  Besides,  the  tools  last  longer.  I  consider  this 
matter  one  of  great  importance  not  only  to  the  gar- 
dener, but  to  the  farmer.  With  the  average  farmer 
the  proper  housing  and  caring  for  all  his  farming  and 
harvesting  implements,  or  leaving  them  to  the  mercy 
of  the  elements  the  livelong  year,  in  the  long  run 
means  a  profit  or  loss  in  his  farming  operations.  These 
things  cost  too  much  to  be  allowed  to  rust  and  rot 
through  gross  neglect.  I  am  giving  this  lecture  regard- 
less of  the  objections  of  the  implement  manufacturers. 
They,  doubtless,  will  say  if  all  follow  my  example  their 
trade  would  fall  off.  Of  course  it  would ;  but  you  and 
I  are  not  working  for  the  manufacturers,  unless  we 
neglect  our  tools,  in  which  case  we  serve  them  for 
nothing  and  board  ourselves  as  well. 


CHAPTER   VII 

SUCCESS    IN    TOWN    OR    CITY 

One  of  the  most  profitable  small  gardens  was  at 
Darlington,  Maryland,  where  a  little  patch  of  about 
one-third  of  an  acre  yielded  Alfred  P.  Edge  produce 
worth  two  hundred  and  seventy-one  dollars  and  thirty- 
nine  cents  at  a  cost  of  forty-five  dollars  and  sixteen 
cents,  and  secured  him  the  second  Allen  prize,  fifty 
dollars  in  gold. 

The  summary  of  this  wonderful  little  garden  is 
worth  itemizing:  Labor  cost  twenty-nine  dollars  and 
thirty-eight  cents ;  manure,  four  dollars ;  seeds,  three 
dollars  and  ninety  cents ;  rent  of  land  and  of  tools, 
seven  dollars  and  eighty-eight  cents;  total  cost,  forty- 
five  dollars  and  sixteen  cents.  The  manure  was  mostly 
that  of  sheep  and  obtained  at  one  dollar  per  load. 
Manuring  was  evidently  not  extreme  and  the  value  of 
the  crops  seems  owing  to  good  management  in  various 
directions,  as  will  appear  in  the  extracts  following, 
taken  from  Mr.  Edge's  very  readable  account.  His 
notes  on  garden  irrigation,  with  illustrations,  appear 
in  the  chapter  on  that  subject: 

I  always  have  piles  of  old  leaves,  weeds,  chaff, 
in  fact  anything  I  can  find  of  this  sort.  I  follow  the 
plow  and  fork  this  material  into  the  furrow  and  when 
the  plow  comes  around  again  it  is  covered.  This  plan 
followed  up  will  change  the  worst  clay  soil  into  just 
what  is  wanted. 

Instead  of  permanent  hotbeds,  I  dig  a  hole  in  the 
most  convenient  place  in  my  garden,  fill  it  with  manure 
and   pack   it   down,   then   set   my   box   without   any 


SUCCESS     IN     TOWN     OR     CITY  '9I 

bottom  on  the  manure,  put  on  some  fine  soil,  bank  up 
the  earth  around  the  outside,  put  on  the  sash,  and  my 
hotbed  is  ready.  Wiien  1  am  through  with  it  I  take 
up  my  box  and  sash  and  put  them  under  cover  until 
next  year.     I  have  four  such  boxes  about  four  feet 


CELERY  BOARDED  READY  FOR  BLEACHING 

square  in  which  I  start  egg  plant,  lettuce,  tomatoes, 
cabbage,  etc.  In  the  center  of  one  box  I  usually  sow 
a  hill  of  cucumbers  and  when  the  glass  and  box  are 
no  longer  needed  I  take  them  away  and  my  cucumbers 


92 


PRI2E    GARDENING 


cover  the  ground  around  and  bear  nearly  all  summer. 
One  great  advantage  of  this  bed  is,  when  my  plants 
grow  tall  enough  to  touch  the  glass  I  shnply  raise  the 
box  higher  and  bank  up  more  earth  outside. 

When  we  lived  in  the  city  and  wanted  anything 
for  our  next  meal  we  left  an  order  at  the  store  and 
there  the  matter  ended.     Here  we  must  plan  far  ahead 


GRAPEVINE  WITH  BAGS  ON  FRUIT 


or  go  without.  The  garden  is  planned  bearing  in 
mind  the  fact  that  there  are  in  each  year  one  thousand 
and  ninety-five  meals  to  be  provided  for. 

After  tea  I  put  bags  on  sixty  bunches  of  grapes. 
My  custom  has  been  for  several  years  to  bag  most  of 
my  grapes.    I  do  not  suppose  it  would  pay  to  do  it  for 


SUCCESS     IN     TOWN     OR     CITY 


93 


market,  but  it  certainly  does  pay  for  home  use,  where 
you  want  the  best  you  can  get.  Bagged  bunches  are 
much  finer,  as  anyone  can  easily  prove  by  taking  two 
bunches  side  by  side,  one  bagged,  the  other  not.  The 
bagged  bunch  will  ripen  more  evenly,  have  more  bloom 
and  be  better  every  way,  excepting  it  may  possibly  be 
a  few  days  later  in  ripening,  neither  do  the  birds  and 
wasps  disturb  it.     Thin-skinned  varieties  like  the  Con- 


TYPICAL  LANDSCAPE  OF  NORTHERN  NEW  JERSEY 


cord  arc  very  much  better.  Anyone  who  tries  bag- 
ging I  am  sure  will  never  give  it  up.  I  buy  at  the 
store  two-pound  bags  such  as  grocers  use;  these  bags 
last  me  two  years  and  only  cost  a  few  cents  per  hun- 
dred. A  paper  of  pins  are  also  required.  One  year 
I  tied  the  tops  of  the  bags,  but  that  takes  too  long.  I 
simply  slip  the  bag  over  the  bunch,  make  a  double  fold 


94  PRIZE      GARDENING 

of  the  top,  stick  a  pin  through  and  there  the  bag 
remains  until  the  grapes  are  ripe.  I  intended  to  make 
some  mushn  bags  this  year,  but  did  not  get  it  done  in 
time.  The  grapes  should  be  bagged  when  they  are 
about  the  size  of  small  shot,  but  later  will  do.  The 
larger  they  are  the  more  trouble  it  is  to  bag  them. 

I  never  bank  up  my  celery ;  late  in  the  season  I 
prop  twelve-inch  boards  outside  the  whole  bed.  My 
bed  is  one  mass  of  plants,  and  if  the  ground  is  rich 
and  they  are  given  enough  water  the  celery  is  fine; 
but  these  two  things  are  absolutely  necessary.  When 
freezing  weather  comes  I  dig  up  my  plants,  leaving 
some  earth  around  the  roots,  and  take  them  to  my 
cellar,  where  I  have  a  room  closed  off  from  the  rest 
of  the  cellar  with  a  window  opening  under  the  porch. 
This  window  I  open  or  close,  according  to  the  weather, 
and  being  under  the  porch  it  does  not  let  in  much  light. 
The  plants  I  stand  upon  the  floor  and  cover  the  roots 
with  about  three  inches  of  sand.  The  sand  is  kept  in 
place  by  pieces  of  scantling  placed  on  the  floor.  I 
make  the  beds  about  one  and  one-half  feet  wide  with 
a  passageway  between  each  bed.  This  sand  I  always 
keep  moist.  It  is  important  to  moisten  only  the  roots, 
if  water  is  poured  on  the  stalks  and  leaves  they  will 
rot.  I  have  a  pipe  with  a  wide  opening  at  the  top  like 
a  funnel,  this  I  push  down  to  the  roots  and  pour  water 
through  it.  My  celery  is  accessible  all  winter,  in  the 
worst  of  weather,  and  it  keeps  on  growing ;  of  course 
the  room  is  dark  and  it  bleaches  nicely.  I  avoid  all 
heavy  work  of  trucking  and  banking  up,  and  raise 
more  than  twice  as  much  celery  on  the  same  ground, 
so  of  course  can  afford  to  make  the  ground  very  rich. 

I  have  trouble  making  my  lima  beans  climbs  up  the 
poles.  One  of  my  neighbors  tells  me  I  planted  in  the 
wrong  sign  of  the  moon.  All  I  can  say  is,  I  will  get 
them  up  the  pole  in  spite  of  all  the  moons  discovered 


SUCCESS     IN     TOWN     OR     CITY  95 

and  undiscovered.  Query?  How  do  they  ever  get 
beans  planted  on  the  planet  Jupiter  where  there  are  so 
many  moons? 

Most  birds  should  be  made  welcome  by  every 
gardener,  especially  the  house  wren.  I  have  boxes 
and  cans  up  all  around  my  garden  and  generally  they 
are  all  filled.  The  amount  of  insects  these  little  fellows 
destroy  cannot  be  counted.  A  very  simple  way  to  pre- 
vent the  English  sparrow  from  getting  possession  of 
the  box  is  to  suspend  the  box  by  a  short  chain  of  about 
two  Hnks  so  it  will  swing  a  little.  If  the  box  moves 
an  English  sparrow  will  not  light  on  it,  not  so  the 
wrens.  Our  bluebirds,  thanks  to  the  sparrows,  are  a 
thing  of  the  past. 

One  of  the  Best  Suburban  Gardens  was  that  of 
Frank  J.  Bell  of  New  Jersey,  whose  report  won  the 
third  prize  of  fifty  dollars.  His  report  was  beautifully 
illustrated  and  a  marvel  of  neatness  and  accuracy  of 
all  the  details  incident  to  the  work  of  planting  and 
harvesting  the  crops,  etc.  Brief  excerpts  from  it,  and 
the  accompanying  diagram,  will  show  that  the  space 
was  well  utilized  and  that  the  methods  employed  were 
such  as  to  give  the  greatest  returns  for  labor  expended. 
Like  hundreds  of  city  workers,  Mr.  Bell  has  a  small 
place  which  is  sufficient  to  supply  his  family  with  an 
abundance  of  fruit  and  vegetables.  Mr.  Bell  writes 
interestingly  of  his  garden  venture : 

My  business  keeps  me  occupied  at  a  desk  in  a 
nearby  city  and  away  from  home  from  eight  until  five, 
so  that  most  of  my  work  was  done  of  necessity  between 
four  and  seven  in  the  morning.  The  plowing,  spading 
and  some  of  the  rougher  work  I  have  hired  done, 
but  nearly  all  other  work  has  been  my  personal  labor, 
which  has  given  me  great  pleasure  and  satisfaction 
and  been  of  great  benefit  to  my  general  health.  It  is 
not  new  employment  for  me,   for  fifty  years  ago  I 


a. 


SUCCESS     IN     TOWN     OR     CITY  97 

milked  two  cows  and  worked  in  my  mother's  garden. 
My  present  garden  w^as  a  neglected  spot  six  years  ago, 
with  only  a  few  old  apple  and  cherry  trees  scattered 
here  and  there.  The  soil  is  a  rich  loam,  with  a  gravelly 
subsoil.  The  shape  of  the  lot,  containing  something 
over  two  acres,  is  shown  in  the  sketch,  while  the  garden 
proper,  which  is  L-shaped,  contains  thirty-two  thou- 
sand four  hundred  square  feet.  The  pasture  lot  is 
fenced  with  a  woven  wire  picket  fence  four  feet  high, 
placed  on  top  of  ten-inch  boards,  above  which  are  two 
strands  of  barbed  wire.  A  heavy  woven  wire  fence 
separates  the  garden  from  the  pasture  and  extends 
around  the  eastern  side  of  the  barn  to  the  pigeon  cote. 
In  the  passageway  between  the  fences  is  a  gate  hung 
fourteen  inches  from  the  ground,  which  allows  the 
poultry  free  range  of  the  pasture  lot.  All  the  pea  and 
bean  vines,  the  turnip  and  beet  tops,  cornstalks  and 
cabbage  leaves  and  the  various  green  trimmings  are 
consumed  by  the  little  Jersey  cow.  The  poultry  also 
come  in  as  scavengers  and  give  valuable  returns. 

A  pit  for  storing  vegetables  is  a  rectangular  hole 
in  the  ground,  four  feet  wide,  five  and  one-half  feet 
long  and  three  feet  deep.  It  is  lined  with  rough 
boards  to  keep  the  earth  from  falling  in,  and  has  a 
covering  also  of  rough  straw  to  protect  from  frosts. 
This  pit  is  easy  of  access  at  all  times  during  winter, 
and  celery  and  other  vegetables  stored  in  it  keep 
perfectly. 

For  Poisons  and  Fertilizers  I  have  an  oil  barrel 
with  one  head  out,  which  I  keep  in  a  convenient  place 
and  fill  with  water  and  cow  droppings  to  make  liquid 
manure  for  flowers  and  vegetables.  I  also  have  a  half 
barrel  in  which  is  kept  dissolved  blue  vitriol  in  the 
proportion  of  five  pounds  to  fifty  gallons  of  water.  In 
a  keg  I  keep  slaked  lime.  A  mixture  of  these  two  I 
spray  on  grapevines,  rose  bushes,  etc.     White  hellebore 


98  PRIZE     GARDENING 

is  used  as  seems  most  convenient.  It  is  mixed  with 
ten  parts  of  air-slaked  lime  and  shaken  on  the  plants 
with  a  tin  box  with  holes  punched  in  the  lid,  or  used 
in  water,  a  tablespoonful  to  two  gallons,  and  sprinkled 
on  with  a  watering  can.  A  knapsack  sprayer  has 
entirely  superseded  the  old  hand  and  foot  pump 
sprayer. 

Corn  and  lima  beans  are  planted  in  a  cold  frame 
as  follows :  Fruit  cans  are  thrown  on  a  bonlire  until 
the  ends  are  melted  out,  when  they  are  tied  together 
with  twine.  About  four  inches  of  earth  is  removed 
from  the  cold  frame,  small  pieces  of  board  are  laid  in 
the  bottom,  and  the  cans  put  on  them  close  together. 
The  earth  is  then  put  back  in,  filling  the  cans  and  inter- 
stices. Three  seeds  of  corn  and  two  of  beans  are 
planted  in  each  can.  When  danger  of  frost  is  past, 
the  plants  are  removed  to  the  garden.  A  small  hole  is 
dug,  the  twine  cut^  the  can  removed  and  the  earth 
drawn  up  to  the  plant.  I  frequently  gain  two  or  three 
weeks'  growth  in  this  way. 

How  the  Work  Was  Done. — The  following  ex- 
cerpts from  the  daily  register  will  show  that  the 
methods  learned  in  a  business  training  were  followed 
in  the  garden :  March  8,  ordered  seeds  of  Burpee  & 
Co.  to  the  value  of  three  dollars  and  fifty  cents,  mostly 
in  packets,  ounce,  pint  and  quart  packages.  March 
13,  the  seeds  arrived  by  mail;  checked  them  off  with 
order  and  put  away  in  seed  box,  which  is  an  old  tin 
cracker  box,  mouse  proof.  March  20,  set  two  barrels 
with  both  heads  out  over  rhubarb  plants  in  the  row, 
banked  manure  around  them  and  threw  some  old  bags 
over  the  tops  to  get  a  few  extra  early  shoots.  April 
I,  with  a  whitewash  brush  Lyman  smeared  all  the 
grapevines  from  the  ground  to  the  outer  ends  of  the 
stems  with  the  blue  vitriol  solution  with  enough  lime 
in  it  to  show  quite  white ;  he  also  did  the  trunks  of  the 


SUCCESS     IN     TOWN     OR     CITY 


99 


young  trees,  clearing  away  the  soil  slightly  and  extend- 
ing up  beyond  the  first  crotch.  April  lo,  planted  three 
dozen  hills  each  of  corn  and  lima  beans  in  the  cold 
frame ;  set  out  one  quart  white  onion  sets,  sticking  a 
parsnip  seed  or  two  in  each.  April  26,  hoed  cabbage ; 
found  worms  working  on  it  and  sprinkled  them  with  a 
little  lime  water  in  which  was  mixed  a  solution  of  blue 
vitriol  and  a  tablespoonful  of  carbolic  acid  to  the  gal- 
lon.    J\lay   I,  sowed  one  ounce  rape  seed  under  the 


RESIDENCE  UF  E.  J.  BELL 


apple  tree  where  nothing  else  would  grow.  July  4, 
picked  seven  quarts  of  large  gooseberries  of  the  fol- 
lowing varieties  from  young  bushes  just  beginning  to 
bear:  Chautauqua,  Oregon,  Jumbo,  Clayton,  Red 
Jacket  and  Industry.  October  17,  Lyman  and  helper 
gathered  leaves  and  placed  them  along  berry  rows  and 
in  the  stable  for  bedding. 

The  expenses  of  this  garden  were  forty-four  dol- 
lars and  fifty-seven  cents.  This  was  all  for  labor 
except  three  dollars  and  fifty  cents  for  seeds  and  one 
dollar   and   twentv-five   cents   for   a   barrel    of   lime. 


100  PRIZE     GARDENING 

Nearly  all  the  products  were  consumed  in  the  family 
and  stored  for  winter  use. 

From  a  Quarter  Acre  Garden  on  town  lots  in 
Griggsville,  Illinois,  L.  J.  Eastman,  winner  of  a  five- 
dollar  regular  prize,  secured  products  worth  fifty-four 
dollars  and  ninety  cents  at  a  cash  outlay  of  one  dollar 
and  ninety-five  cents  for  manure,  two  dollars  and 
seventy-six  cents  for  seed  and  eight  dollars  and  twenty- 
three  cents  for  work.  Profit,  forty-one  dollars  and 
ninety-six  cents.  In  addition  he  personally  performed 
five  dollars  and  fifty-three  cents  worth  of  labor,  which 
he  thinks  was  offset  by  the  pleasure  and  health  received. 
This  town  garden,  says  Mr.  Eastman,  has  furnished 
the  family,  numbering  from  ten  to  two,  with  all  the 
fruit  and  vegetables  required,  except  potatoes,  in  a  bad 
potato  year,  and  of  late  years  has  placed  considerable 
produce  on  the  local  market.  The  time  devoted  to  the 
garden  was  one  hundred  and  twelve  hours  man's  work 
and  nine  hours  boys'  work. 

A  Productive  Little  Suburban  Garden  of  two- 
fifths  of  an  acre  was  entered  by  A.  W.  Dickson,  Massa- 
chusetts, receiving  a  Rawson  five-dollar  prize.  Soil 
was  good  loam  and  was  enriched  with  three  cords  of 
stable  manure  and  two  hundred  pounds  fertilizer. 
Celery,  cauliflower,  cabbage,  tomatoes  and  peppers 
were  started  in  a  cold  frame.  Space  being  valuable 
it  was  saved  whenever  possible,  following  early  crops 
with  cabbage,  celery,  turnips,  winter  spinach.  Cab- 
bages were  set  as  late  as  August  12,  but  were  much 
inferior  to  those  set  in  July.  Some  celery  plants  w^re 
set  a  foot  apart  each  way,  but  the  extra  labor  of  the 
method  more  than  offset  the  saving  in  space.  Receipts 
from  this  garden  were  sixty-three  dollars  and  ninety- 
five  cents.  Cost,  not  including  labor  of  owner,  thirty- 
six  dollars  and  seventy-five  cents. 


SUCCESS     IN     TOWN     OR     CITY 


Id 


A  City  Garden  Patch,  two-thirds  of  an  acre  in  a 
Massachusetts  city,  was  planted  to  one-half  acre 
onions  and  the  rest  turnips,  celery,  tomatoes,  beets, 
spinach,  lettuce,  etc.,  the  produce  being-  sold  to  con- 
sumers. Manure  was  hauled  from  the  city  and  some 
fertilizer  was  used.  Tools  and  team  were  valued  at 
two  hundred  and  twenty  dollars  and  land  at  one  hun- 
dred dollars.     Mr.  G.  E.  Belden,  who  was  awarded  a 


RESIDENCE  OF  R.  I..  PORTER 

Rawson  five-dollar  prize,  estimates  that  the  g-arden 
patch  paid  fifteen  cents  per  hour  for  labor  of  owner, 
and  a  clear  profit  besides  of  one  hundred  and  thirty- 
seven  dollars  and  eighty-three  cents.  Onion  weeders 
were  paid  fifty  cents  per  day.  Onions  sold  at  forty 
cents  per  bushel. 

Fighting  Borers  and  JJ^ifch  Grass. — Located  in  a 
fertile  valley  of  western  Massachusetts  and  employed 
most  of  the  time  in  an  office,  R.  L.  Porter  found  oppor- 


t02  I*RlZE    GARDENING 

tunity  to  manage  a  prize  garden  and  to  make  a  suc- 
cessful and  instructive  tight  against  well-known  gar- 
den foes.  The  illustration  shows  Mr.  Porter's  resi- 
dence and  the  family  which  provided  him  an  excellent 
home  market  for  much  of  his  produce.  The  extracts 
describe  his  early  garden  work  and  his  method  with 
squashes    and    strawberries : 

The  first  work  done  for  the  garden  commences  in 
February  as  soon  as  seed  catalogs  arrive.  I  make  a 
rough  plan  where  crops  are  to  be  grown,  amount  of 
seed  and  fertilizer  wanted  and  place  orders  for  all 
plants,  trees  and  seeds.  Nothing  more  is  done  until 
the  last  week  in  March,  when  the  hotbed  is  started. 
I  have  a  small  one  by  myself.  It  is  three  by  four  feet, 
two  feet  deep.  Bought  one-eighth  cord  horse  manure 
for  generating  the  heat,  making  the  depth  of  manure 
one  and  one-half  feet.  Over  this  I  placed  four  inches 
soil  that  had  been  taken  up  with  celery  the  fall  before, 
making  soil  fine  and  allowing  to  heat  under  cover  of 
the  glass  for  a  few  days.  When  soil  had  got  well 
warmed  I  moistened  it  with  lukewarm  water,  planted 
radishes,  lettuce,  celery  and  covered  with  one-half  inch 
of  sand,  firming  with  a  smooth  board. 

For  Winter  Squashes,  I  took  the  worst  piece  of 
witch  grass  that  the  meadow  possesses,  marked  out  for 
hills  six  feet  each  way  by  throwing  out  a  forkful  of 
earth.  The  fertilizer  was  then  put  in,  two  parts  of 
wood  ashes  to  one  of  bone  meal,  one  quart  to  each  hill. 
Then  I  took  a  fork,  mixing  the  fertilizer  with  the  soil, 
shaking  out  all  the  witch  grass,  smoothed  over  the  hill, 
dropped  the  seed  and  covered  about  an  inch  deep,  then 
pressed  well  with  the  hoe.  The  first  leaf  that  showed 
was  given  a  sprinkling  of  paris  green  to  kill  the  black 
and  yellow  striped  bug.  I  keep  the  cultivator,  both 
horse  and  wheel  hoe,  going  until  the  vines  get  to  run- 
ning and  then  they  will  keep  the  witch  grass  down. 


CHAPTER  VIII 


FERTILIZER  GARDENS 


Offers  of  special  prizes  for  gardens  enriched  with 
commercial  fertilizers  led  to  their  extensive  use,  espe- 
cially by  contestants  in  the  eastern  states.  The  season 
being  a  very  dry  one  was  for  that  reason  unfavorable  to 
chemical  manures,  since  it  is  claimed  that  manure  of 
animals  improves  the  drouth-resisting  power  of  the 
soil.  The  accounts  showing  best  results  from  fer- 
tilizers usually  described  gardens  with  soil  full  of 
vegetable  fiber ;  very  often  it  was  fresh  plowed  sod 
land,  and  the  results  give  the  impression  that  chemi- 
cal fertilizers  are  most  profitably  used  on  light,  loose, 
rather  moist  soils  that  have  been  recently  in  sod. 

In  many  gardens,  fertilizer  was  lavishly  used,  one 
of  the  offers  requiring  the  application  at  the  rate  of 
two  tons  per  acre.  The  results  often  showed  that  the 
quantity  and  quality  of  the  crop  justified  such  an  out- 
lay at  the  start,  while  in  other  cases  it  failed  to  pay. 
From  the  representative  accounts  following  may  be 
judged  something  of  the  various  conditions  and  results 
in  the  fertilized  gardens : 

The  First  Priz,c  for  fertilizer  gardens  was  awarded 
to  E.  R.  Flagg,  Worcester  county,  Massachusetts.  This 
garden  was  fresh-turned  grass  sod,  a  gravelly,  yellow- 
ish loam  worth  fifty  dollars  per  acre.  The  plot  con- 
tained one  thousand  square  feet.  It  received  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  pounds  high  grade  fertilizer,  besides 
twenty-  two  pounds  of  lime  to  correct  the  sourness  of 
the  soil.  The  garden  was  plowed  deeply  May  5,  and 
the  turned  sod  well  worked  with  a  horse  cultivator 


104 


PRIZE     GARDENINKS 


four  times  ovtr,  making  a  mellow  surface  three  inches 
deep  without  pulling  up  much  of  the  sod.  A  smooth- 
ing harrow  finished  the  job. 

Seed  was  planted  deep  on  account  of  the  dry  sea- 
son, and  fertilizer  applied  in  the  drill  and  stirred  in 
with  a  small  tree  brush.  Some  of  the  garden  was  very 
closely  planted,  early  radish  and  spinach,  for  instance, 
being  planted  between  rows  of  potatoes.  The  between 
crops  were  done  about  the  middle  of  June.     The  pota- 


EDWARD  R.  FLAGG 


toes  were  followed  by  peas  and  beans  sown  the  last 
part  of  July,  but  these  did  not  thrive.  Mr.  Flagg 
thinks  very  close  planting  not  desirable  on  a  dry  year. 
The  drouth  seemed  more  serious  on  the  sod  land  than 
upon  old  ground. 

Culfk'ating  the  Garden. — May  30,  used  the  garden 
drill  fitted  with  cultivator  teeth  or  hoes  through  the 
garden  wherever  crops  were  sufficiently  above  ground 
to  make  it  possible,  considering  the  very  close  planting. 
Nearly  all  the  ground  was  stirred  excepting  a  little 


FERTILIZER   GARDENS  IO5 

close  to  the  carrots,  and  narrow  strips  where  the  hills 
of  corn,  pole  beans  and  melons  were  planted. 

Cultivated  the  garden  June  3,  working  as  close  as 
possible  to  the  plants — potatoes,  peas,  beans,  corn,  tur- 
nips and  beets  are  well  up  so  that  cultivating  is  easily 
done.     Lack  of  suitable  showers  and  ground  getting 
very  dry.     Thinned  the  turnips  June  6,  using  those 
removed    for    greens.     Carefully    stirred    the    earth 
directly  over  the  melon  and  squash  seeds.     They  ger- 
minate slowly  on  account  of  the  dry  weather.     Placed 
some  low,  small  pea  brush  along  the  row  of  Extra 
Early  peas  June  9.     Put  some  water  on  the  melon  hills 
to   hasten   germination   and   thinned   the   turnips   still 
more.     Removed  the  last  of  the  radishes  June  19  and 
perhaps  a  half  dozen  very  dwarf  spinach  plants  from 
between  the  rows  of  potatoes.     Spinach   a  complete 
failure,  owing  doubtless  to  soil  acidity,  as  no  lime  was 
put  on  this  part  of  the  garden.     Some  of  the  radishes 
were  wormy  and  useless.     Applied  *'  Bug  Death  "  to 
the  potato  vines  to  kill  potato  beetles.     Scattered  fer- 
tilizer between  the  rows  of  potatoes  and  worked  it  into 
the  soil  thoroughly  with  the  drill  plow.     Substituted 
the  hoes  for  the  plow  aad  worked  out  all  the  other 
crops,  removing  all  weeds  from  among  the  plants. 

Made  a  second  application  July  4  of  *'  Bug 
Death  "  to  the  potato  vines.  July  14,  thinned  the 
beets  for  greens.  Dry  weather  has  caused  the  beets 
to  grow  very  slowly.  July  15,  pulled  up  all  pea  vines 
and  stirred  the  earth  about  the  melons  and  tomato 
plants.  July  18,  used  the  wheel  hoe  to  cultivate  all 
the  garden  wherever  possible  to  get  between  the  plants. 
Pulled  up  the  turnips  for  pig  feed,  as  they  are  getting 
wormy.  July  24,  dug  the  potatoes,  fertilized  the 
ground  and  on  the  following  day  planted  peas,  beans 
and  turnips.  August  2,  used  cultivator  to  stir  the 
earth  between  the  rows  of  peas  and  beans  on  the  potato 


106  PRIZE     GARDENING 

ground.  August  4,  pulled  out  the  row  of  bush  beans, 
which  had  ceased  bearing,  to  give  the  bush  limas  more 
room.  August  16,  cut  up  the  first  planting  of  corn, 
using  the  fodder  for  the  cows.  August  19,  stuck  some 
of  the  pea  brush  used  earlier  in  the  season  along 
the  rows  of  Extra  Early  peas  on  the  potato  ground. 
Used  the  cultivator  between  the  rows  of  peas,  beans 
and  turnips.  September  25,  cut  up  the  last  planting 
of  sweet  corn.  Had  a  very  large  barrow  load  of  fodder 
for  the  cows. 

Spinach  was  sown  with  the  radish  seed  be- 
tween the  rows  of  potatoes  on  the  unlimed  portion 
of  the  garden  as  a  sort  of  vegetable  test  for  acidity  in 
the  soil,  and  its  utter  failure  to  grow  corroborated  the 
litmus  paper  test  previously  made.  It  was  the  inten- 
tion to  sow  spinach  for  fall  use  on  the  limed  portion  of 
the  garden,  but  again  the  crowded  condition  of  the 
crops  gave  no  opportunity  for  such  sowing.  Upon 
that  portion  of  the  garden  it  would,  without  doubt, 
have  given  a  good  crop. 

In  this  locality  of  early  fall  frosts,  that  most  deli- 
cious of  all  green  beans,  the  lima,  is  rarely  grown.  It 
gave  very  moderate  results  in  our  garden,  because 
somewhat  crowded  and  shaded  by  the  rows  of  Potter's 
Excelsior  corn.  The  Dwarf  lima  is  worthy  of  trial  and 
care  in  every  garden.  Planted  as  other  beans  are  ordi- 
narily planted,  the  lima  has  difficulty  in  getting  its  huge 
bulk  out  of  the  soil  in  the  process  of  germination.  Care 
in  planting  is  therefore  necessary.  Fertilize  well. 
Ridge  the  drill  a  little  above  the  level  of  the  soil  to 
throw  off  surplus  water  and  plant  edgewise,  eye  down, 
not  too  deep  in  the  soil.  The  garden  culture  of  this 
bean  should  be  encouraged. 

Another  vegetable  quite  unknown  is  the  kohl-rabi, 
a  plant  of  the  earliest  culture,  without  enemies  or  dis- 
eases, quick  growing  and  as  palatable  as  the  turnip; 


FERTILIZER   GARDENS  107 

more  acceptable  to  some.  It  should  find  a  place  in 
every  garden.  Cultivate  in  every  way  like  cabbage, 
except  that  the  plants  may  be  set  out  twelve  inches 
apart  in  the  drill.  Cut  for  use  w^hen  the  bulb  is  about 
three  inches  in  diameter,  tender  and  not  *'  woody," 
cook  and  prepare  for  the  table  like  turnip  or  with 
cream  like  cauliflower. 

The  sweet  corn  was  planted  in  single  rows  the 
length  of  the  garden,  and  under  those  circumstances 
the  fertilization  of  the  ears  was  less  perfect  than  usual. 
Sweet  corn  evidently  requires  considerable  cross- 
fertilization  between  individual  plants,  hence  planting 
a  given  number  of  hills  in  a  compact  mass  is  doubtless 
much  better  practice  than  putting  an  equal  number  of 
hills  in  a  long  single  row. 

The  peas  planted  July  25  produced  only  one  pick- 
ing of  nine  quarts,  and  the  vines  were  badly  covered 
with  mildew.  The  beans  planted  at  the  same  time 
gave  nothing,  as  they  were  killed  by  the  frost  of  Sep- 
tember 14-16  when  the  first  bean  pods  were  about  one 
inch  In  length.  Neither  could  be  called  a  success- 
ful crop. 

In  planting  potatoes,  fertilizer  was  first  broad- 
casted over  the  plot  and  worked  into  the  soil,  the  small 
stones  being  raked  out  before  plowing.  The  furrows 
were  made  with  the  garden  drill  with  plow  attach- 
ment, the  first  one  on  the  east  side,  nine  inches  from 
the  boundary  line  running  north  and  south.  Six 
others  were  made  parallel  with  the  first  and  eighteen 
inches  apart.  Extra  Early  potatoes  had  been  exposed 
to  the  light  in  a  single  layer  in  a  moderately  warm 
room  since  March  30  and  had  developed  buds  about 
one-half  inch  in  length.  The  tubers  were  carefully 
cut  into  one  and  two-eye  pieces  and  immediately  placed 
in  the  bottom  of  the  furrows,  the  sets  being  twelve 
inches  apart.     Five  pounds    of    potatoes    planted  the 


I08  PRIZE     GARDENING 

Space.  A  little  soil  was  placed  over  each  set  and  the 
furrows  dusted  with  potato  fertilizer.  The  covering 
was  quickly  and  neatly  done  with  the  garden  plow. 
The  spaces  between  the  potato  drills  were  dusted  with 
fertilizer,  and  after  working  it  into  the  soil  a  row  of 
Victoria  Spanish  and  Burpee's  Earliest  radish  seeds, 
mixed,  was  sown  with  the  seed  drill  in  each  space. 
This  planting  was  done  Alay  5,  following  a  heavy  frost 
the  previous  morning. 

Seeds  for  this  garden  cost  three  dollars  and  twen- 
ty-seven cents ;  all  supplies,  five  dollars  and  forty-six 
cents ;  labor,  three  dollars  and  six  cents ;  receipts  were 
twenty  dollars,  and  profits  seven  dollars  and  eighty- 
nine  cents. 

Grozving  Preiniiini  Products. — Prize  vegetables 
were  abundant  on  the  quarter-acre  garden  cultivated 
by  W.  H.  Pillow,  New  York,  winner  of  the  second 
Bowker  special  prize.  His  account  includes  a  long 
list  of  awards  at  the  state  fair  and  several  county  fairs, 
besides  special  prizes  offered  by  seedsmen.  His  aggre- 
gate winnings  were  fifty-five  dollars  and  seventy-five 
cents,  and  amounted  to  over  one-half  of  the  whole 
income,  which  was  ninety-five  dollars  and  seventeen 
cents.  Expenses  were  seventy-nine  dollars  and  eigh- 
teen cents,  expenses  of  growing  and  exhibiting  the 
product  being  heavy.  A  good  share  of  his  success 
appears  to  have  been  due  to  starting  his  vegetables 
under  glass,  as  elsewhere  described.  Writes  Mr. 
Pillow : 

For  sowing  by  hand  I  use  the  hand  marker  and 
make  drills  sixteen  inches  apart.  In  every  other  row 
I  put  beets,  mangels  and  such  things  as  stand  all 
summer  and  require  room,  while  the  intervening  rows 
were  used  for  radishes,  lettuce,  cabbage,  spinach,  all 
of  which  are  out  of  the  way  by  the  time  the  permanent 
crop  requires  the  room-     After  sowing  such  seed  as  is 


FERTILIZER     GARDENS 


[O9 


sowed  by  hand  I  cover  by  brushing,  lengthwise  and 
Hghtly,  over  the  drill  with  the  back  of  the  hoe.  This 
covers  the  seed  and  presses  the  ground  about  it  similar 
to  the  action  of  a  roller.  With  practice  one  can  do 
this  as  fast  as  one  can  walk.  I  use  stakes  for  marking 
divisions  between  the  different  kinds  of  seeds,  made 


ml- 


Q^^  ^- 


Hmw" 


ON  CLLTL'UE  AND  CHEMICALS 

from  sections  of  plastering  laths  a  foot  long  and 
marked  with  a  number.  A  record  of  these  is  kept  in 
a  book  that  I  carry  in  my  pocket,  so  that  I  can  tell  at 
any  time  from  the  number  on  the  stake  what  kind  of 
seed  was  planted. 

Pricked   outdoors    May  5  from   hotbed,  cabbage 
and  lettuce  plants  that  were  between  rows  of  beets  to 


no  PRIZE     GARDENING 

stand  until  large  enough  to  transplant  where  they  are 
to  mature,  the  lettuce  to  make  heads  for  use.  The 
lettuce  was  placed  six  inches  apart  in  the  row,  the 
cabbage  two  inches  apart.  I  used  a  pointed  wooden 
drill  and  transplanted  as  heretofore  described. 

A  Prhne  Garden  on  Cheinicals. — By  pinning  his 
faith  to  commercial  fertilizer  in  lavish  quantity,  E.  N. 
Foote  of  Massachusetts  secured  a  good  garden,  not- 
withstanding the  drouth.  The  profit  was  one  hundred 
and  twenty-seven  per  cent  on  cost,  and  his  concise 
account  secured  him  the  third  special  prize. 

This  was  strictly  a  fertilizer  garden,  not  a  spoon- 
ful of  manure  having  been  used  on  the  land  for  the 
past  ten  years,  during  which  time  the  piece  was  in  sod 
until  the  year  preceding  the  garden,  when  onions  had 
been  grown  there  on  fertilizer.  The  area  was  about 
one-sixth  of  an  acre  and  the  soil  the  porous,  sandy 
loam  of  the  Connecticut  river  valley.  It  was  plowed 
and  harrowed  in  fall  and  again  in  spring,  followed  by 
rolling.  Declares  Mr.  Foote :  "  My  experience  has 
been  that  no  labor  pays  better  for  a  seed  crop  than  to 
thoroughly  firm  the  ground,  filling  all  the  air  spaces 
and  preventing  the  rapid  evaporation  of  soil  water." 

High  grade  fertilizer  was  applied  broadcast  at  rate 
of  two  tons  per  acre  and  harrowed  in.  Cultivation  of 
the  garden  was  thorough  and  frequent,  a  wheel  hoe 
being  used.  Of  the  seventeen  vegetables  grown,  four- 
teen showed  a  profit  and  three  a  small  loss.  The  best 
showing  was  with  winter  squash,  which  on  one  thou- 
sand eight  hundred  and  twenty  square  feet  produced 
sixteen  dollars  and  eighty-four  cents  worth,  at  a  cost 
of  four  dollars  and  sixty-one  cents.  Small  areas  of 
radishes,  cabbages,  beets,  lettuce,  cucumbers  and  toma- 
toes proved  very  profitable.  Sweet  corn,  although  sold 
at  good  prices,  fifteen  to  twenty-five  cents  per  dozen. 


FERTILIZER    GARDENS  III 

netted  a  loss  of  a  few  cents^  the  fertilizer  alone  costing 
three-fifths  of  the  crop  returns.  Pole  beans  also  made 
a  bad  showing,  owing  in  part  to  cost  of  poles,  setting 
them  and  tying  the  vines.  Onions  were  the  third  finan- 
cial failure,  owing  to  low  prices  for  crop  and  amount 
of  labor  required. 

The  garden  gospel,  according  to  Mr.  Foote,  may 
be  summed  up  in  these  four  rules  or  requirements : 

A  plot  of  land  free  from  all  shade  of  trees  or 
buildings. 

Good  garden  fertilizer  applied  at  the  rate  of  not 
less  than  two  tons  to  the  acre. 

The  very  best  seed  the  market  produces,  regard- 
less of  cost. 

Thorough  cultivation  from  early  spring  until  fall. 

Drainage  and  Fertilizer. — A  farm  garden  made 
fit  by  deep  drainage  and  dressed  with  commercial  fer- 
tilizer was  entered  by  A.  C.  Abrams,  Albany  county, 
New  York,  and  received  fourth  prize.  Soil  was  moist 
clay  loam.  The  plot  contained  about  one-third  acre, 
and  is  enclosed  with  pickets  painted  with  coal  tar ;  a 
fencing  which  has  lasted  fifty  years  or  more.  Too 
much  moisture  came  in  from  a  small  lake  on  a  higher 
level,  but  by  a  drain  twenty-five  rods  long  with  a  rise 
of  one-half  inch  per  thirteen  feet  the  surplus  water  was 
removed.  This  drain  was  finally  extended  to  the  lake, 
draining  away  its  contents  and  greatly  improving  the 
adjoining  land.  The  garden  was  fertilized  at  rate  of 
two  tons  per  acre,  but  the  dry  season  prevented  the 
full  effect. 

About  one-third  of  the  fertilizer  was  sown  broad- 
cast before  plowing.  The  ground  was  then  plowed 
nicely  about  eight  inches  deep,  then  about  one-third 
more  fertilizer  sown  broadcast  and  the  ground  thor- 
oughly cultivated.     The  balance  of  the  fertilizer  was 


112  PRIZE     GARDENING 

saved  for  use  in  hills  and  second  crop,  but  it  was  soon 
found  the  soil  had  quite  as  much  fertilizer  as  the  seed 
and  plants  would  bear,  so  Mr.  Abrams  used  the  balance 
largely  between  the  rows. 

Labor  was  charged  at  twelve  cents  per  hour  by 
hand  and  thirty  cents  by  horse.  Fertilizer  cost  four- 
teen dollars  and  thirty-five  cents  and  seeds  three  dol- 
lars and  three  cents.  Among  the  crops  were  lettuce, 
radish,  peas,  tomatoes,  cabbage,  celery,  cucumbers, 
beets,  beans,  turnips,  corn.  The  location  proved  excel- 
lent for  celery,  yielding  one  thousand  one  hundred  and 
twenty  plants,  worth  sixteen  dollars  and  eighty  cents. 
Total  receipts  w^ere  seventy-four  dollars  and  forty 
cents ;  cost,  forty  dollars  and  seventy-nine  cents ;  profit, 
thirty-three  dollars  and  sixty-one  cents. 

Feeding  the  Soil. — By  using  fertilizer  at  the  rate 
of  two  tons  to  the  acre,  R.  E.  Bartlett,  New  Hamp- 
shire (Bowker  five-dollar  prize),  managed  to  make 
a  tolerably  good  garden  from  a  plot  which  had  been 
used  as  a  yard  for  colts  and  in  cleaning  which  all  the 
surface  soil  had  been  removed.  The  owner  says  :  "  The 
land  seemed  dead  and  did  not  do  so  well  as  much  other 
land  that  I  tilled.''  The  fertilizer  was  mostly  sowed 
and  then  raked  in.  The  plot  contained  only  one  thou- 
sand three  hundred  square  feet,  valued  at  two  dol- 
lars. It  produced  a  great  variety  of  vegetables  for 
home  use,  worth  ten  dollars  and  fifty-seven  cents,  at 
a  cost  of  six  dollars  and  twenty-nine  cents.  Profit, 
four  dollars  and  twenty-eight  cents.  Much  of  the  fer- 
tilizer would  remain  for  the  following  year  unless  the 
texture  of  the  denuded  soil  being  little  better  than  sand 
should  allow  leaching.  A  cover  crop  of  rye  plowed 
under  in  the  spring  would  help  save  the  fertility  and 
tend  to  restore  the  soil. 

A  Fine  Profit  from  one  thousand  square  feet  is 
shown  by  S.  L.  Parker,  Massachusetts.     He  cleared 


FERTILIZER     GARDENS  113 

thirty  dollars  and  fifty-four  cents,  of  which  nearly 
twenty  dollars  was  for  premiums  at  fairs.  For  vege- 
tables used  in  the  family  he  charged  four  dollars  and 
forty-five  cents  and  sold  four  dollars  and  twenty-two 
cents  worth,  besides  giving  away  two  dollars  and  three 
cents  worth  and    having    five    dollars    and  twenty-six 


FARM  AND  GARDEN  OF  J.  G.  LYMAN 

cents  worth  on  hand.  Labor  cost  two  dollars  and 
fifty-seven  cents,  seeds  fifty-one  cents,  fertilizer  one 
dollar  and  twenty-five  cents.  The  plan  of  laying  all 
crops  in  long  straight  rows  evidently  saved  expense 
in  labor,  and  the  wheel  hoe  was  a  great  help  in  the  same 
direction.  By  planting  for  a  late  garden,  Mr.  Parker 
succeeded  in  avoiding  the  drouth  which  proved  so 


114  PRIZE     GARDENING 

injurious  to  early  vegetables.  A  gorgeous  row  of  nas- 
turtiums added  to  the  garden's  attractiveness.  The 
account  well  deserved  the  five-dollar  prize  awarded. 

Quarter-acre  Garden  of  Jere  O'Keefe,  Massachu- 
setts, was  fresh  turned  sod  from  a  run-out  mowing 
field  which  had  not  been  manured  for  ten  years.  Fer- 
tilizer was  sown  broadcast  and  harrowed  in  at  the  rate 
of  two  tons  per  acre,  and  nineteen  kinds  of  seed  were 
planted.  Beans,  cucumbers,  beets  and  potatoes  did 
well ;  melons,  carrots  and  onions  failed.  Other  sorts 
did  fairly  well.  Income,  forty-three  dollars  and  fifty- 
three  cents ;  cost,  thirty-one  dollars  and  seventy  cents ; 
profit,  eleven  dollars  and  eighty-three  cents. 

A  Net  Profit  of  Ninety-tzvo  Dollars  and  Forty- 
three  Cents  is  recorded  from  a  little  more  than  an  acre 
and  three-quarters,  by  J.  G.  Lyman,  Connecticut, 
besides  an  amount  nearly  as  large  charged  off  for  labor. 
The  account  won  a  Rawson  five-dollar  prize.  The 
land  was  good  loam,  second  year  from  sod,  and  was 
given  fertilizer  at  the  rate  of  one  thousand  five  hundred 
pounds  per  acre  at  a  cost  of  forty-two  dollars  and  fif- 
teen cents.  Income  was  two  hundred  and  sixty-three 
dollars  and  fifteen  cents.  The  produce  came  early  and 
brought  good  prices,  but  Mr.  Lyman  thinks  his  greatest 
mistake  was  in  not  starting  work  early  enough  in 
the  spring. 

A  Very  Highly  Fertilized  One-third  Acre  was  de- 
scribed by  Bert  A.  Hall,  Massachusetts.  The  plot  re- 
ceived one  thousand  five  hundred  pounds  high  grade 
fertilizer,  twenty  bushels  ashes  and  one  and  one-half 
cords  manure.  The  soil  was  rather  thin  and  dry.  Results 
were  disappointing,  as  the  proceeds,  sixty-four  dollars 
and  forty-nine  cents,  were  exceeded  by  the  cost, 
seventy-three  dollars  and  ninety-six  cents,  by  a  loss  of 
nine  dollars  and  forty-seven  cents.  The  charge  for 
wear  and  tear  of  tools  was,  however,  too  great  (thirteen 


FERTILIZER    GARDENS 


"5 


dollars  and  thirteen  cents)  for  the  area  in  which  they 
were  used,  and  it  might  fairly  be  said  that  the  account 
came  out  nearly  even.  The  experience  tends  to  show 
that  old,  thin  soil  and  a  dry  season  combine  unfavor- 
able conditions  for  lavish  use  of  fertilizer.  The  account 
won  a  Rawson  five-dollar  prize. 

A  Good  Family  Garden  of  one  thousand  one  hun- 
dred and  seventy-five  square  feet  is  reported  by  J. 
Stark,  Connecticut.  With  five  hundred  pounds  fertilizer 


MRS.  W.  D.  GOSS 


broadcast  and  harrowed  in  he  raised  crops  worth  forty- 
three  dollars  and  eighty-six  cents  at  a  cost  of  thirty 
dollars  and  twenty-eight  cents,  leaving  thirteen  dollars 
and  fifty-eight  cents  profit. 

Fertilizer  at  the  rate  of  two  tons  to  the  acre  made 
an  excellent  little  garden  of  two  thousand  square  feet 
of  sod  land  owned  by  Mrs.  W.  D.  Goss,  Vermont. 
Half  the  fertilizer  was  applied  broadcast  and  the  rest 
in  hill  or  drill.     Fertilizer  cost  three  dollars  and  fifty 


Il6  PRIZE     GARDENING 

cents ;  labor,  six  dollars  and  forty-five  cents ;  seeds, 
two  dollars.  The  vegetables  were  valued  at  twenty- 
eight  dollars  and  twenty-two  cents ;  leaving  sixteen 
dollars  and  twenty-seven  cents  profit.  Potatoes, 
squashes  and  cabbages  were  the  largest  items,  and  these 
vegetables  seem  to  thrive  in  most  of  the  fertilizer  gar- 
dens on  new  land.  The  garden  account  received  a 
five-dollar  Bowker  prize. 


CHAPTER   IX 

PRIZE     GARDENING     FOR     WOMEN 

Of  the  fortunate  one  hundred  securing  a  prize,  no 
fewer  than  twenty-seven  were  women.  Some  of  these 
merely  prepared  the  account,  the  actual  gardening 
having  been  done  by  male  relatives,  and  such  accounts 
were  nearly  always  attractive  and  complete.  Other 
women  contestants  did  more  or  less  of  the  work  of  the 
garden.  A  few  of  them  did  everything,  even  to  the 
spading  and  carting  of  manure.  Some  of  the  best 
gardens  were  planned,  worked  and  managed  by  women. 

In  most  cases  the  gardeners  of  the  fair  sex  made 
a  reasonable  cash  profit,  but  it  is  a  noteworthy  fact 
that  nearly  every  one  of  them  mentions  increase  of 
health  and  pleasure  as  a  leading  advantage  from  the 
experiment.  Women  living  on  farms  do  not  stay  in 
the  open  air  and  sunlight  so  much  as  might  be  sup- 
posed, and  some  of  them  note  with  evident  surprise 
the  benefit  obtained  from  a  daily  bit  of  outdoor  work. 
Light  gardening  seems  to  be  the  one  form  of  useful 
exercise  that  can  be  depended  on  for  good  results 
for  women. 

One  woman  of  seventy  years  took  up  the  work 
largely  on  account  of  her  health  and  says  the  outdoor 
exercise  helped  her  more  than  all  the  doctors  in  the 
land.  Another  says :  "  I  have  derived  considerable 
pleasure  from  my  garden,  a  good  deal  of  experience 
and  a  little  money.  Of  course  I  have  made  many  mis- 
takes, which  another  year  I  hope  to  avoid." 

The  absurdity  of  the  attempt  to  dose  and  drug  a 
sickly   body   to   permanent   health   has   been   recently 


Il8  tRl2E     GARDENING 

declared  with  emphasis  by  certain  Hghts  of  the  medical 
profession.  Still  worse  to  depend  on  the  crude  theo- 
ries and  medicated  tipples  of  the  advertising  quacks. 
Pushing  a  garden  plow  is  better  than  pills,  and  plant- 
ing the  seeds  a  better  tonic  than  any  patent  powders. 

If  some  new  type  of  philanthropist  would  donate 
hospital  sites  to  be  divided  into  small  garden  plots  to 
be  worked  by  ailing  women,  it  is  a  question  if  the  plan 
would  not  finally  avert  more  suffering  than  if  the  land 
were  covered  with  hospital  buildings  and  sanitariums. 
At  any  rate,  for  the  average  woman,  a  garden  in  the 
back  yard  is  better  than  an  apothecary  shop  on  the 
next  corner,  and  a  dollar  invested  outdoors  has  saved 
many  a  family  another  dollar  in  doctors'  fees  and  ten 
times  its  value  in  trouble  and  suffering.  But  there  are 
plenty  of  women  who  make  gardening  pay  them  also 
in  dollars  and  cents. 

A  Swart  Woman's  Success. — One  of  the  most 
successful  gardeners  in  the  contest  was  Miss  Sadie  A. 
Dibble  of  Connecticut,  who  did  nearly  all  the  work  of 
planting  and  cultivating,  and  all  the  harvesting  and 
marketing  in  a  fruit  and  vegetable  garden  of  three- 
fourths  of  an  acre. 

From  this  plot  of  ground  she  raised  products  worth 
two  hundred  and  twenty-three  dollars  and  thirty-five 
cents,  besides  giving  away  twenty-five  dollars  worth 
and  taking  twenty-five  dollars  more  in  premiums  at 
the  local  fair,  making  the  total  income  two  hundred 
and  seventy-three  dollars  and  thirty-five  cents.  The 
expense  for  labor  was  forty-five  dollars  and  twenty 
cents ;  fertilizer,  twelve  dollars ;  seeds,  four  dollars  and 
seventy  cents,  and  poisons  twenty  cents,  or  a  total  of 
sixty-two  dollars  and  fifteen  cents,  which  left  a  profit 
of  two  hundred  and  eleven  dollars  and  twenty  cents. 
The  products  were  valued  at  wholesale  rates  and 
about  one-third  less  than  the  returns  actually  received, 


PRIZE  GARDENING  FOR  WOMEN  IIQ 

SO  that  her  profits  were  considerably  more  than  the 
figures  indicate. 

The  work  in  the  prize  garden  began  early  in  April 
by  trimming  the  berry  bushes  and  sowing  seed  in  boxes 
and  hotbeds  the  I2th.  Hardy  seeds,  like  onion,  lettuce, 
radish,  peas  and  beets,  were  sown  in  the  open  ground 
April  25.  The  principal  vegetables  grown  were  peas, 
beans,  sweet  corn  and  cabbage,  but  considerable  income 
was  also  derived  from  cucumbers,  lettuce,  tomatoes, 
melons  and  squash.  The  fruit  furnished  by  far  the 
larger  part  of  the  revenue. 

Her  gardening  experience  began  fifteen  years  ago 
with  a  piece  of  five  hundred  strawberry  plants  infested 
with  weeds.  She  eradicated  the  dock,  dandelion  and 
other  weeds,  and  got  a  yield  of  forty  quarts  a  day 
from  the  bed.  She  went  to  town  one  day  to  sell  a  crate- 
ful,  as  her  father  was  detained,  and  from  this  small 
beginning  she  has  worked  up  a  nice  trade,  which  goes 
far  toward  making  her  independent.  The  farm  pro- 
duced at  that  time  a  succession  of  grapes,  quinces,  pears 
and  apples,  and  to  these  she  added  a  stock  of  all  the 
desirable  varieties  of  raspberries,  some  blackberries, 
currants,  plums  and  fortv  grapevines.  Writes  Miss 
Dibble : 

We  had  a  fine  crop  of  berries,  picking  about  forty 
quarts  a  day.  We  could  not  use  them  all  and  were 
obliged  to  sell  some.  On  the  Fourth  of  July  my  father 
said  to  me :  'There  are  twenty-four  quarts  of  straw- 
berries and  sixteen  quarts  of  cherries  engaged  to  go  to 
Stony  Creek  to-day.  I  cannot  go  with  them  myself, 
but  if  you  will  go  you  can  have  the  money."  I  nearly 
turned  pale  and  trembled  at  the  idea.  Me  go  ?  Why, 
I  was  quite  high-toned  and  had  never  done  anything 
of  the  kind  in  my  life.  My  married  sister  was  visiting 
me  and  she  encouraged  me  to  go  and  said  she  would 
go  with  me.    We  went.  We  found  that  by  some  mistake 


120  PRIZE     GARDENING 

there  had  been  put  in  the  crate  two  quarts  extra  of 
cherries.  What  was  I  to  do  with  them?  My  sister 
said  :  "Sell  them.  They  are  so  beautiful,  surely  some- 
one would  be  glad  to  buy  them."  So  I  stopped  at  a 
cottage  where  some  people  were  sitting  on  the  veranda. 
They  were  pleased  with  the  cherries  and  bought  them. 
As  soon  as  their  neighbors  saw  us  with  1*he  crate  they 
rushed  out  with  dishes  all  eager  to  buy  fruit  and  dis- 
appointed because  we  had  none.  I /old  them  I  would 
bring  some  to-morrow. 

This  was  the  beginning  of  a  fine  trade  in  small 
fruits.  I  had  at  that  time  a  succession  of  pears,  apples, 
grapes  and  quinces.  I  added  to  my  stock  all  desirable 
varieties  of  raspberries,  some  blackberries,  currants, 
plums  and  forty  grapevines.  I  bought  novelties  as 
they  appeared.  I  took  care  of  the  garden  myself  as 
far  as  I  was  able.  By  and  by  one  of  my  customers 
asked  if  I  would  plant  a  vegetable  garden  for  her. 
"Why,  yes,  certainly."  Soon  there  was  another  and 
another,  and  I  had  more  orders  than  I  could  fill.  The 
fruit  and  vegetables  were  picked  fresh  each  morning 
and  put  up  in  the  neatest  possible  manner.  I  dressed 
nicely  and  drove  in  a  new  carriage.  My  customers 
were  delighted  with  the  fruit  and  very  proud  of  me. 
I  have  kept  steadily  at  the  work  all  these  years  and 
instead  of  being  something  degrading,  as  I  at  first 
fancied  it  to  be,  my  labor  has  proved  to  be  a  great 
pleasure,  and  I  have  found  many  friends  among  edu- 
cated and  wealthy  people.  More  than  that,  I  found 
what  is  best  of  all — good  health. 

Cabbage,  lettuce  and  tomato  seed  were  planted  in 
hotbeds.  I  cut  the  bottoms  from  pasteboard  boxes 
about  six  inches  square  and  placed  them  on  trays, 
covers  of  cracker  boxes  being  used.  In  these  I  put 
earth  and  well-rotted  manure,  then  planted  melons, 
cucumbers,   summer   squash  and   peppers   and  placed 


PRIZE  GARDENING  FOR  WOMEN  121 

them  in  sunny  windows.  As  soon  as  they  were  ready 
to  transplant,  I  slipped  a  trowel  under  them,  it  was 
done  easily  and  without  disturbing  their  growth  in 
the  least.  I  found  it  the  best  method  I  had  ever  tried 
for  starting  tender  plants. 

For  the  Mammoth  Whale  squash  I  dug  large  holes, 
filled  them  in  with  cow  manure  and  after  covering 
with  a  little  earth  planted  the  seed.  When  the  vines 
had  run  about  ten  feet  I  pinched  off  the  side  shoots, 
blossoms  and  all  but  one  squash.  I  pinched  the  top 
of  the  vine  and  placed  it  in  a  dish  containing  a  pint 
of  sweet  milk.  Each  morning  or  as  often  as  practi- 
cable I  repeated  the  operation.  In  this  way  we  have 
grown  squashes  that  weigh  one  hundred  and  fifty 
pounds.  This  season  the  nights  were  so  cold  that  they 
did  not  average  half  that  figure. 

Potatoes  were  cut  in  pieces  containing  one  eye, 
laid  on  trays  and  carefully  placed  in  furrows  with  the 
eyes  uppermost.  People  said  I  would  not  have  any 
potatoes,  for  I  cut  the  seed  in  such  small  pieces.  From 
one-half  luishel  seed  I  raised  twelve  bushels  of  enor- 
mous size.  These  took  first  premium  at  the  local  fair, 
where  there  was  lively  competition. 

I  don't  know  that  the  garden  contest  made  any 
difference  with  me  or  my  labor.  I  worked  just  as 
hard  before  and  I  have  done  the  same  since.  I  have 
always  a  genuine  love  for  my  fruit  and  flowers,  and 
ask  no  better  bill  of  fare  than  a  dinner  of  fresh  vege- 
tables. I  like  the  outdoor  life ;  the  health  it  gives  me, 
the  oxygen  I  breathe.  I  have  made  little  study  of  new 
fruits  or  vegetables  for  the  last  two  years,  as  so  many 
of  my  investments  have  proved  worthless.  It  seems 
that  I  already  have  as  fine  fruits  as  are  known.  Cer- 
tainly they  are  greatly  admired  and  eagerly  sought  for, 
and  I  take  many  premiums  at  fairs ;  sometimes  one 
hundred  at  a  single  fair. 


122  PRIZE     GARDENING 

My  methods?  I  drive  my  work.  I  never  let  my 
work  drive  me.  I  do  all  the  work  I  can  in  the  fall  to 
save  work  in  the  spring.  I  do  all  I  can  in  the  spring 
to  help  along  the  work  in  the  fall.  I  never  stop  to 
think  of  the  weather,  if  it  is  too  hot,  or  too  cold,  if  I 
am  tired  or  thirsty.     I  keep  hustling  right  along.     In 


MRS.  DOLE'S  GARDEN  IN  AUGUST 

the  busy  season  I  rise  at  four  o'clock  in  the  morning. 
I  work  early,  I  work  late,  as  seems  necessary.  I  buy 
the  best  implements  possible  and  the  best  seeds  the 
markets  afford.  I  use  plenty  of  fertilizers.  I  read 
agricultural  papers.  When  I  read  a  new  suggestion  I 
follow  it  until  I  am  satisfied  that  it  is  advantag^eous  or 


PRIZE  GARDENING  FOR  WOMEN  12^ 

Otherwise.  Before  ail  and  above  everytliing-  else  is  a 
quiet  determination  to  succeed  in  whatever  I  undertake. 
A  Woman's  Pastime. — Our  farm  upon  which  the 
garden  is  situated  is  a  hill  farm  and  in  the  center  of 
the  state,  writes  Mrs.  J.  E.  Dole  of  Vermont.  The 
garden  spot  is  in  the  open  field,  which  was  a  piece 
of  greensward,  and  is  sixty  by  one  hundred  and  thirty 
feet,  and  the  soil  is  a  clayey  loam.  My  youngest  son 
enlisted  in  the  Spanish-American  war  and  died  from 
fever,  and  to  keep  my  mind  and  hands  busy  I  entered 
the  garden  contest.  1  knew  I  could  not  compete  with 
those  who  live  where  the  season  is  longer  and  who  do 
not  expect  a  frost  every  month.  With  a  set  of  Planet 
Jr  implements,  garden  hoe  and  rake  I  felt  well 
equipped  for  the  summer's  work.  The  garden  spot 
was  easy  of  access,  quite  level,  but  the  soil  was  thin 
in  places,  as  it  was  underlaid  with  a  granite  ledge. 

The  weather  was  so  cold  that  no  work  was  done 
until  Alay  i,  when  eight  cords  of  manure  were  put  on 
and  the  garden  plowed  and  harrowed.  I  sowed  some 
peas  in  double  rows  one  foot  apart  and  two  feet 
between  every  two  rows,  so  that  I  could  bush  two  rows 
of  peas  with  one  set  of  brush.  Made  drills  with  my 
hoe  and  put  Bowker's  phosphate  in  the  bottom,  cover- 
ing with  loose  soil  before  sowing  the  peas.  Planted 
bush  cranberry  beans,  onions,  lettuce,  beets,  spinach, 
parsley  and  sweet  corn  May  5-6.  May  8  made  three 
flower  beds  twenty-four  by  two  and  one-half  feet  and 
raked  in  phosphate  sown  broadcast  before  planting  the 
seed,  which  was  aster,  snapdragon,  balsam,  bachelor's 
button,  candytuft,  cacalia,  dianthus,  gaillardia,  lobelia, 
marigold,  mignonette,  petunia,  phlox,  poppies,  portu- 
laca,  sweet  alyssum,  verbenas  and  feverfew. 

Planted  some  potatoes  May  9,  the  next  day  cab- 
bage, cauliflower,  carrots,  turnips  and  lettuce  and  the 
day  following  okra,  martynia,  beet,  radish  and  sweet 


124  PRIZE     GARDENING 

corn.  During  the  latter  part  of  the  month  and  early 
June  I  planted  sweet  potatoes,  pumpkins,  beans,  sweet 
corn,  broccoli,  parsnips,  salsify,  squash,  potatoes, 
cucumbers,  radish,  popcorn  and  nasturtium.  The 
ground  is  full  of  trumpet  vine  and  milkweed,  and  it 
makes  me  discouraged  to  look  across  the  garden  and 
see  the  weeds  cropping  up  everywhere.  Early  in  June 
I  transplanted  egg  plants,  peppers,  cabbage  and  cauli- 
flower. The  earliest  plants  from  seed  sown  in  the 
house  in  February  were  killed  by  transplanting  in  soil 
made  too  rich  with  hen  manure.  In  setting  out  my 
plants  I  dug  a  hole  a  foot  or  more  across,  set  the  plant 
in  the  center,  not  disturbing  the  roots  any  more  than 
I  could  help,  when  I  tore  the  paper  box  away  from 
them  and  drew  some  soil  up  around  the  plants,  then 
put  on  the  well-rotted  manure,  half  a  shovelful  in  a  hill, 
and  covered  the  fertilizer,  leaving  the  ground  a  little 
the  lowest  next  to  the  plant. 

There  was  no  rain  from  May  30  to  June  25,  when 
a  heavy  shower  wet  down  about  an  inch.  There  will 
not  be  many  days  now  that  we  will  not  have  something 
from  the  garden  to  help  fill  out  our  bill  of  fare.  Owing 
to  the  extremely  dry  weather  many  seeds  came  up 
unevenly.  Some  popcorn  was  a  foot  high  and  mar- 
tynia  in  blossom,  while  other  seeds  were  just  breaking 
through.  For  celery  plants  I  put  well-rotted  manure 
three  or  four  inches  deep  in  the  bottom  of  the  trench 
and  covered  it  with  soil  before  setting  the  plants.  I 
used  ashes  freely  on  the  onion  bed  and  around  all 
the  plants. 

The  garden  cost,  for  fertilizer,  nineteen  dollars 
and  seventy  cents ;  seeds,  three  dollars  and  fifty  cents ; 
rent  of  land,  two  dollars ;  labor,  most  of  which  I  did 
myself,  twenty-eight  dollars  and  forty-five  cents ;  or  a 
total  of  fifty-three  dollars  and  sixty-five  cents.  At 
wholesale  prices  the  products   were   worth   sixty-one 


PRIZE    GAKl)1_\1.\G     iuR     \\U^JEN  125 

dollars  and  seventy-eight  cents.  At  our  fair  1  took 
first  prize  for  best  collection  of  vegetables  and  pre- 
miums to  the  amount  oi  eight  dollars  and  forty  cents, 
making  the  total  income  from  the  garden  seventy  dol- 
lars and  eighteen  cents,  and  the  profit  sixteen  dollars 
and  fifty-tiiree  cents.  Besides  having  plenty  of  fresh 
vegetables,  I  found  the  work  in  the  open  air  was  of 
great  benefit  to  my  health. 

.1  Good  Home  Garden  was  operated  by  Estella 
Arney  of  Illinois.  The  garden  is  seventy-four  by  one 
hundred  and  two  feet,  with  a  path  through  the  center 
lengthwise  and  a  row  of  currants  and  gooseberries  on 
either  side.  Along  the  outside  boundaries  are  a  row 
of  raspberries,  twelve  bunches  of  rhubarb,  several  of 
horse-radish,  twelve  grapes,  six  bunches  winter  onions, 
sage  and  a  few  stalks  of  flowers.  The  tools  used  were 
a  hoe,  rake  and  spading  fork.  Four  loads  of  stable 
manure  for  fertilizer.  During  April  four  days'  work 
was  done  plowing  the  garden,  planting  sixty  hills  of 
potatoes,  four  of  cucumbers  and  sowing  onion,  cabbage 
and  lettuce  seed.  There  were  gathered  nineteen 
bunches  of  onions  and  five  of  horse-radish  and  eighty 
cents  spent  for  seeds. 

Tn  May,  two  and  one-fifth  days'  labor  was  put  in 
planting  beans,  sweet  corn  and  beets,  transplanting 
three  hundred  cabbages,  fifty  mango  peppers,  sixty 
tomatoes  and  hoeing  onions,  while  the  products  were 
two  bunches  rhubarb,  twelve  beets,  thirty  bunches 
onions,  three  messes  radishes  and  six  of  lettuce.  The 
late  table  beets,  butter  beans  and  bunch  beans  and 
lettuce  were  planted  in  June,  two  hundred  and  fifty  late 
cabbages  set,  celery  transplanted  and  the  garden  hoed 
several  times,  two  and  one-half  days'  work  being  given 
in  all.  The  products  were  forty  bunches  of  onions, 
three  and  one-quarter  bushels  lettuce,  twenty-five  cents 
worth  radishes,  four  and  one-half  gallons  gooseberries, 


126  PRIZE     GARDENING 

one  gallon  currants,  three  gallons  raspberries,  eleven 
bunches  rhubarb  and  two  and  one-half  gallons  of  it 
canned,  and  twenty  cents  worth  of  horse-radish. 

During  July  the  garden  was  well  cultivated,  the 
onions  (three  bushels)  gathered  and  the  ground  sowed 
to  turnips,  while  an  abundance  of  early  cabbages, 
cucumbers,  beets,  lettuce  and  tomatoes  were  picked. 
The  last  cultivation  was  given  in  August,  when  nearly 
all  the  garden  was  hoed.  A  hose  long  enough  to  reach 
nearly  the  entire  garden  was  attached  to  the  pump 
and  the  cabbage  irrigated.  An  abundance  of  products 
were  gathered,  including  one  hundred  and  five  pounds 
grapes,  seven  dozen  peppers,  five  dozen  ears  sweet  corn, 
one-half  bushel  dried  beans,  two  bushels  tomatoes  and 
twelve  gallons  kraut  made. 

More  irrigation  was  done  in  September,  and  the 
turnips  thinned,  while  in  October  the  cabbages  were 
pulled  and  buried  or  made  into  sauerkraut,  the  turnips 
and  remaining  crops  harvested.  Fifty  heads  of  cab- 
bage were  buried,  fifteen  gallons  kraut  made,  five 
bushels  turnips  and  three  pecks  beets  gathered.  A 
large  bunch  of  celery,  some  cabbage,  turnips  and  beets 
were  exhibited  at  the  fair  and  awarded  first  premiums. 

In  figuring  up  the  productions,  Mrs.  Arney  finds 
a  valuation  of  thirty-six  dollars  and  thirty-nine  cents, 
an  expense  of  nineteen  dollars  and  fifty-five  cents  for 
labor,  fertilizer,  seeds  and  insect  powder,  and  a  profit 
of  sixteen  dollars  and  eighty-four  cents.  This  is  at 
the  rate  of  two  hundred  and  nine  dollars  and  twenty- 
three  cents  per  acre  for  production  and  ninety-six  dol- 
lars and  eighty-three  cents  profit.  She  did  all  the  work 
except  plowing,  earned  fifteen  dollars  and  twenty  cents 
for  her  labor,  and  remarks :  "  I  am  glad  that  I  joined 
the  contest,  for  I  am  sure  I  have  learned  quite  a  good 
deal.  I  have  never  thought  about  how  much  the  gar- 
den was  really  worth," 


PRIZE  GARDENING  FOR  WOMEN 


127 


The  IVinncr  of  the  Ninth  Regular  Prize  was  Mrs. 
L.  A.  Ludwig,  Holling,  Kansas,  her  account  standing 
highest  among  the  lady  contestants  in  that  hst.  Her 
husband  being  disabled  by  rheumatism,  this  plucky 
woman  was  thrown  upon  her  own  resources  for  the 
time,  yet  she  not  only  succeeded  in  planting  and  caring 
for  a  good  garden,  with  the  help  of  her  five  young 
children,  but  also  prepared  a  model  report  in  point  of 
neatness,  compactness  and  clearness. 


MRS.  L.  A.  LUDWIG 


Sales  from  the  one  and  one-third  acres  were  two 
hundred  and  thirty-eight  dollars  and  forty  cents,  with 
cabbage,  radish,  onions  and  tomatoes  heading  the  list 
as  money-makers.  The  good  work  done  by  the  chil- 
dren was  shown  in  the  sale  of  over  sixty  dollars  worth 
of  onions  weeded  by  them.  The  charge  for  labor  was 
ninety-one  dollars  and  fifty-three  cents.  All  expenses, 
one  hundred  and  seventy-two  dollars  and  eleven  cents, 
leaving  sixty-six  dollars  and  twenty-nine  cents  profit. 
Much  labor  was  saved  by  the  iise  of  a  whe^l  hoe.    By 


128  PRIZE     GARDENING 

sowing  the  quickly  germinating  onion  seed,  a  little  of 
it  in  the  drills  with  the  onion  seed,  the  rows  became 
visible  in  a  few  days,  and  cultivation  could  begin 
at  once. 

Mrs.  Ludwig,  being  a  farmer's  daughter  and 
sickly  in  childhood,  did  not  have  the  advantage  of  com- 
pleting even  a  common  school  education,  and  being  one 
of  a  large  family  of  children,  began  work  away  from 
home  at  the  age  of  fourteen.  She  was  married  at 
twenty-two  to  F.  M.  Ludwig,  sixteen  years  ago.  Their 
triumph  came  in  1900  in  the  shape  of  a  little  five- 
acre  home  paid  for  and  practically  out  of  debt.  The 
family  includes  two  boys  and  four  girls,  a  happy  rol- 
licking set,  every  one  natural  horticulturists  and  stu- 
dents of  nature. 

A  Woman's  Garden  Diary. — An  excellent  under- 
standing of  the  toils,  perplexities  and  joys  of  the  aver- 
age amateur  gardener  may  be  gathered  from  the  prize 
winning  record  given  below  by  Mrs.  W.  R.  Bale  of 
New  Jersey : 

I  commenced  my  garden  by  planting  in  boxes  in 
a  sunny  east  window  in  the  cellar  a  few  lettuce  and 
cabbage  seeds,  and  by  putting  tomato  seeds  in  flower 
pots  in  the  kitchen  windows.  The  mice  ate  the  lettuce 
and  cabbage  plants  after  they  were  nicely  started.  I 
then  sowed  more  the  last  of  March  in  the  house,  put- 
ting them  out  of  doors  when  the  weather  was  suitable. 
These  thrived  apace  and  gave  good  plants  for  the  gar- 
den later. 

The  first  real  work  done  in  the  garden  was  pre- 
paring the  ground  for  sweet  peas  and  celery.  This 
was  late  in  March  and  during  early  April.  As  I 
wished  to  raise  celery  plants  for  sale,  I  sowed  two 
ounces  of  seed,  every  one  of  which  I  think  sprouted.  I 
made  a  level  row  six  inches  wide,  over  which  I  scat- 
tered the  seed  thinly.     This  proved  a  good  way,  as  the 


PRIZE  GARDENING   FOR   WUMEN  I29 

plants  were  not  crowded,  and  grew  stocky  and  strong. 
They  were  sheared  off  three  times  before  time  for 
transplanting  and  made  excellent  plants.  The  space 
where  they  were  planted  was  about  twelve  by  twenty- 
four  feet  and  held  nearly  ten  thousand  plants,  of  which 
about  eight  thousand  -five  hundred  were  set  out,  sold  or 
given  away,  xo  each  neighbor  or  friend  I  gave  fifty, 
letting  them  buy  as  many  more  as  they  wanted.  I  sold 
about  seven  thousand  at  thirty-five  cents  per  hun- 
dred, making  the  little  patch  very  profitable,  although 
I  spent  much  work  upon  it. 

The  next  work  was  getting  the  berry  bushes  in 
order,  and  I  spent  much  time  in  trimming  and  thin- 
ning them  out  and  cutting  out  dead  wood.  When  we 
began  planting  the  early  seeds  I  put  a  radish  seed  every 
two  or  three  inches  in  all  the  rows  of  onions  and  pars- 
nips, then  firmed  the  soil  1)y  walking  over  the  rows. 
The  radishes  germinated  in  a  few  days,  marking  the 
rows  so  that  they  could  be  worked  before  the  other 
plants  showed  above  ground.  The  radishes  grow 
quickly  and  can  be  pulled  and  used  before  the  other 
plants  are  large  enough  to  need  the  room. 

We  have  had  a  great  deal  of  trouble  with  the  little 
fleas  that  eat  the  radishes,  tomatoes,  etc.,  and  used 
plaster  and  soot  freely.  We  had  many  fine  cal^bage 
plants,  but  all  the  Savoy  and  some  of  the  others  had 
club  root  so  bad  that  they  could  not  be  used.  Had 
such  dry  weather  that  everything  seemed  likely  to  die. 
Hoeing  every  day  or  evening  after  sundown  was  our 
only  resource,  as  to  draw  water  and  carry  it  from  the 
well  was  more  than  I  could  do,  although  I  carried  a 
great  many  pailfuls  for  celery.  We  had  much  trouble 
with  the  squash  bugs  in  squashes,  cucumbers  and 
melons.  We  planted  radishes  in  the  hills  and  used 
cow  manure  mixed  with  water,  sprinkled  on  the  vines. 
Many  hills  had  to  be  planted  over,  but  I  guess  we  shall 


130  PRIZE     GARDENING 

have  plenty  of  plants,  for  every  vacant  square  foot  in 
the  garden  has  a  melon  or  squash  vine  coming  up. 
Uncle  says  "he  likes  to  have  plenty  and  they  will  do 
no  hurt." 

July  12. — Gathered  the  first  cucumbers.  They  are 
selling  here  at  three  for  ten  cents.  All  vegetables  are 
very  high;  lettuce  five  cents  a  head  now  at  Newton, 
beets  nine  cents  a  bunch,  peas  and  beans  five  cents  a 
quart.  The  celery  plants  are  going  off  well.  All  the 
people  who  come  for  them  exclaim  in  wonder  over  our 
garden.  ''The  finest  garden  I  ever  saw !"  ''Why ! 
You  have  everything  in  your  garden."  "What  do  you 
expect  to  do  with  so  much?"  These  and  many  more 
admiring  comments. 

August  I. — We  have  so  many  cucumbers  that  I 
do  not  know  what  to  do  with  them,  and  everybody  else 
has  them  also.  Last  year  I  supplied  all  the  neighbors, 
sometimes  giving  away  three  bushels  at  a  time.  Now 
I  can  only  feed  them  to  the  hogs.  Have  found  the 
thief  which  has  been  eating  the  parsnip  tops.  Going 
quietly  out  just  now  I  saw  a  ground  hog  run  from  the 
parsnips  down  under  the  wire  fence  through  the  stones, 
into  his  hole.  Mr.  B.  says  he  will  kill  him  with  bisul- 
phide of  carbon.  The  Fordhook  Early  corn  has  given 
us  but  two  dozen  ears  fit  to  eat.  They  are  either 
unfilled  or  covered  with  smut,  more  of  the  latter.  The 
Country  Gentleman  is  very  fine  and  not  very  late.  It 
is  planted  very  thick,  but  sets  two  or  three  good  ears 
to  a  stalk,  so  we  shall  have  plenty.  The  tomatoes  are 
simply  a  wonder.  They  are  now  ripening  at  the  rate 
of  a  bushel  or  more  a  day  and  still  in  bloom.  The 
Gradus  and  Quality  peas  both  began  to  bloom  after  the 
first  crop  was  picked  and  have  given  us  several  messes 
for  the  table  and  seed  for  next  year.  I  suppose  the 
dfy  weather  early,  and  later  so  much  rain,  was  the 
cause  of  the  unusual  proceeding. 


PRIZE  GARDENING   FOR   WOMEN  I3I 

September  i. — There  are  many  melons  and  they 
are  now  ripening  fast.  We  have  many  freaks  this 
year.  Nearly  every  stump  where  we  have  cut  a  cab- 
bage head  has  grown  from  three  to  thirty  small  heads, 
from  the  size  of  a  walnut  to  three  or  four  inches  in 
diameter.  One  cauliflower,  instead  of  making  a  single 
head,  branched  from  the  stalk  and  gave  six  heads  about 
four  inches  across,  each  inclosed  in  its  outer  leaves.  I 
found  several  medium-sized  ears  of  corn  not  covered 
by  any  husk  at  the  top  of  the  stalks  among  the  tassels. 
The  Australian  Brown  onion  was  very  good  and  of 
mild  and  pleasant  flavor.  The  celery  seems  to  be 
blighting.  The  outside  leaves  turn  brown  at  the  tips 
and  slowly  die  down.  Both  varieties  seem  affected, 
and  some  who  bought  plants  have  the  same  trouble. 
Out  of  six  hundred  plants  set  not  more  than  half  that 
number  are  good  ones. 

November  lo. — The  garden  is  about  all  garnered 
in.  The  celery  is  to  bury  and  the  vegetable  oysters 
and  parsnips,  both  very  fine,  will  be  left  in  the  ground 
till  spring,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  packed  in  sand 
for  winter  use. 

Oiie  of  the  Most  Profitable  Small  Gardens  was 
carried  on  by  Mrs.  L.  M.  A.  Hall,  Tolland  county,  Con- 
necticut. Her  income  from  about  a  quarter-acre  was 
two  hundred  and  five  dollars  and  sixty-four  cents. 
Expenses  were  sixty-three  dollars  and  thirteen  cents, 
leaving  one  hundred  and  forty-two  dollars  and  fifty- 
one  cents  net.  The  produce  was  sold  from  a  meat  cart, 
and  brought  fair  prices.  Earliness  greatly  helped  the 
cash  returns.  Some  crops  were  started  indoors,  while 
the  outdoor  crops  were  planted  at  the  earliest  possible 
date,  with  the  result  that  most  of  the  produce  was  sold 
before  similar  crops  from  other  gardens  had  come  into 
the  market.  Beans  and  corn  were  considered  the  most 
profitable  garden  crops,  but  all  the  common  vegetables 


132  PRIZE     GARDENING 

were  grown.  Fertilizers  cost  ten  dollars  and  seventy- 
five  cents,  of  which  the  largest  item  was  five  dollars 
for  five  barrels  ashes.  Hen  manure,  stable  manure  and 
phosphate  were  also  used.  Much  of  the  work  was  done 
by  a  ten-years-old  son  with  a  wheel  hoe.  Hoeing  the 
entire  garden  before  the  vegetables  came  up  proved  a 
fine  plan  for  killing  weeds.  This  contestant  received 
a  Rawson  five-dollar  award. 

Writing  in  June,  1901,  Mrs.  Hall  says:  "  I  have 
doubled  the  size  of  last  year's  garden  and  hired  my  son 
by  the  month  to  till  it.  He  is  eleven  years  old,  and  I 
give  him  three  dollars  a  month,  the  money  to  be  put 
in  bank.  I  believe  an  acre  of  garden  the  most  remu- 
nerative one  on  the  farm  if  worked  to  its  best.  We 
had  squashes,  beets  and  roots  of  all  kinds  till  April  this 
year,  which  I  think  is  the  result  of  ripening  early  and 
care  in  harvesting." 

A  Native  of  Gamany,  and  inexperienced  in  writ- 
ing English,  Mrs.  Clara  Kuntze,  Daggett,  Michigan, 
told  the  story  of  her  half-acre  garden  in  a  manner  suffi- 
ciently clear  and  accurate  to  secure  a  Rawson  five- 
dollar  prize.  The  garden  was  tended  by  two  women 
folk,  and  seems  to  have  been  a  success.  It  included 
such  unusual  vegetables  as  lintels,  red  cabbage,  kohl- 
rabi. Use  was  made  of  liquid  manure  and  straw  mulch. 
Cabbage  seed  was  planted  in  check  rows  and  the  plants 
thinned  out.  Income  was  fifty-two  dollars  and  fifty- 
one  cents,  and  expenses,  twenty-one  dollars  and 
forty-seven  cents ;  leaving  thirty-one  dollars  and 
four  cents  net. 

A  Model  Account  of  a  rather  poor  and  unsatis- 
factory garden  was  submitted  by  Amelia  C.  Guild,  and, 
according  to  the  terms  of  the  contest,  received  a  special 
Rawson  twenty-five -dollar  prize,  although  the  cost  of 
the  garden  was  four  times  the  income. 


134  PRIZE     GARDENING 

The  location  was  at  a  summer  home  at  Thomas- 
ton,  Maine,  which  was  being  started  for  the  benefit  of 
poor  children  trom  the  cities.  Miss  Guild  had  little 
previous  experience  in  gardening,  the  land  was  rocky 
and  infested  with  weeds  and  insect  pests,  so  that  many 
of  the  crops  failed  to  pay  expenses.  To  cap  the  climax 
of  trouble,  a  neighbor  s  cow  broke  in  several  times  and 
completely  spoiled  some  of  the  crops.  The  crops  were 
worth  twenty-seven  dollars  and  fifty-nine  cents,  at  a 
cost  of  one  hundred  and  ten  dollars  and  seventy-five 
cents.  But  a  portion  of  the  loss  is  offset  by  tools  and 
material  on  hand  and  by  improvement  to  land.  The 
two  views  show  some  of  the  difficulties  and  also  the 
beautiful  scenery  of  the  mountain  range  in  the  back- 
ground, also  some  of  the  excellent  but  costly  vege- 
tables grown. 

A  Nice  Little  Income  from  one-tenth  acre  was 
reported  by  Mrs.  R.  Kirk,  Oskaloosa,  Iowa,  winner  of 
a  five-dollar  Woodruff  award.  The  vegetables  not 
wanted  for  the  table  were  sold  to  the  lady's  butter  cus- 
tomers, and  the  total  income  was  fifty-five  dollars  and 
ninety  cents  ;  cost,  thirteen  dollars  and  thirty-five  cents ; 
net,  forty-two  dollars  and  fifty-five  cents.  The  tomato 
crop  w^as  very  successful.  Seed  of  Fordhook  First 
was  started  March  9  in  soil  from  the  potato  bin,  cov- 
ered lightly  with  earth  and  a  pint  of  wood  ashes  on  top. 
The  box  was  then  covered  with  a  cloth  and  thoroughly 
wetted  with  hot  water,  and  set  behind  the  stove  three 
days  with  the  cloth  still  on.  They  came  up  quickly 
and  well  and  were  moved  to  a  cooler  place.  *'  I  think 
the  whole  secret  of  raising  nice  plants  is  not  to  crowd 
them  and  to  keep  them  cool  enough  to  prevent  their 
spindling,"  writes  Mrs.  Kirk.  "  In  setting  in  the  gar- 
den, I  level  the  ground  and  put  plants  two  and  one- 
half  feet  apart  each  way,  with  about  a  pint  of  wood 
ashes  to  each.     The  soil  has  already  been  manured. 


136 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


When  the  plants  are  eight  to  twelve  inches  high,  I  drive 
stakes  to  each  one  and  keep  off  all  suckers  but  one  and 
the  main  stem.  When  the  vines  get  to  the  top  of  the 
three-foot  stakes,  I  cut  the  vine  off." 

IVith  Plow,  Harrozv,  IVJicelbarrozv  and  Hoes  as 
the  only  tools,  Emma  C.  Fisher,  Walpole,  Massachu- 
setts, cared  for  a  town  garden  of  one  thousand  three 
hundred  and  fifty  square  feet  and  secured  one  of  the 
ten-dollar  prizes.  Income  netted  a  small  sum  above 
cost.  Tomato  plants  were  set  in  vacant  hills  of  corn. 
Transplanting  pumpkins  was  not  a  success.  Early 
cucumbers  were  obtained  from  vines  transplanted  from 
hotbed.  Potatoes  yielded  best  from  medium  and  large 
seed  tubers.  Purple  Top  turnips  grew  faster  than  the 
Wliite  Egg.  A  tabulated  memorandum  for  each  vege- 
table will  be  useful  for  future  reference  and  compari- 
son.   Below  is  a  specimen  from  this  contestant's  diary : 


Name 

Planted 

Depth 

Manure 

Up 

Hoed 

Ripe 

Yield 

Beans 
Wax 

Beets 

Egyptian 

May  17 
April  29 

1    11/2  in 
I  in 

I  shovel 
per  3  ft 

I  bushel 
per  36  ft 

May  29 
May  8 

June  8 
June  19 

May  13, 
20,  June 
3.9.  17 

July  14 

July  IS 

4qts 
4  doz 

''  Another  year,"  writes  Mrs.  Fisher,  ''  I  should  not 
raise  peas,  potatoes  nor  squashes,  because,  while  they 
are  doubtless  profitable,  they  require  too  much  land. 
In  a  small  garden  there  are  other  vegetables,  such  as 
radishes,  beets,  beans,  lettuce,  melons  and  parsnips, 
needed  only  in  small  quantities,  which  are  more  useful 
than  a  few  peas  or  potatoes.  Early  ones  might  be 
desirable,  but  my  garden  is  not  early  land." 

A  Successful  Garden  of  over  three  acres  is  de- 
scribed by  Mrs.  F.  W.  FIsk,  Clayville,  New  York.  The 
mother  of  three  small  children,  with  no  help  in  the 


PRIZE   GARDENING  FOR   WOMEN  I37 

housework,  Airs.  Fisk  found  time  to  write  a  concise 
story  of  the  garden,  securing  a  regular  five-dohar  prize. 
She  did  much  of  the  work  of  the  garden  and  felt  "bene- 
fited mentally,  physically,  spiritually  and  financially." 
The  value  of  the  produce  was  seventy-six  dollars  and 
forty-two  cents,  and  the  net  profit,  thirteen  dollars  and 


A  NEW  YORK  WOMAN'S  GARDEN 

fifty-seven  cents.  Having  no  hotbed,  the  plan  of  start- 
ing plants  indoors  was  followed  with  success.  Toma- 
toes were  sowed  in  a  pan  of  earth  from  the  woods  and 
put  on  the  stovepipe  shelf.  They  were  up  in  four  days 
and  were  transferred  to  a  sunny  window.     Celery  was 


138  PRIZE     GARDENING 

Started  in  boxes  April  3,  sowing  the  seed,  sprinkling  a 
little  fine  earth  over  it,  wetting  thoroughly  and  setting 
under  the  stove  with  paper  over  the  box  to  keep  in  the 
moisture.  Corn  was  started  about  the  same  time,  plant- 
ing hills  in  small  rolls  of  oilcloth  the  size  of  a  tomato 
can,  removing  the  roil  when  transferring  to  the  field. 
Melons  and  cucumbers  were  started  in  pans  and  trans- 
planted to  the  field.  By  this  plan  good  crops  of  the 
tender  vegetables  were  obtained  before  frost. 

Won  a  Prise. — A  one  and  one-fourth  -acre  farm 
garden  kept  by  Mrs.  H.  R.  Calkins,  Plattsburg,  New 
York,  received  an  Allen  prize  of  five  dollars.  The 
account  is  condensed,  but  very  clear  and  legible.  Soil 
was  clay  loam  fertilized  with  manure  and  ashes.  Hand 
and  wheel  tools  were  used.  Many  of  the  seeds  were 
home-raised.  Supplies  were  valued  at  twenty-one  dol- 
lars and  sixty-five  cents ;  labor  at  twenty-eight  dollars 
and  fifty-three  cents ;  while  the  products  were  worth 
one  hundred  and  eighty-six  dollars  and  eighty-six 
cents;  leaving  a  balance  of  fifty  dollars  and  eighteen 
cents.  As  appears  from  the  account  book,  this  lady 
gardener  was  systematic  in  her  work,  never  allowing  it 
to  get  ahead  of  her,  and  she  seems  to  have  had  a  splen- 
did garden  with  comparatively  little  difficulty. 

My  Flower  Bed  was  a  very  satisfactory  part  of 
my  garden,  writes  Mrs.  J.  L.  England,  Maryland.  I 
think  what  time  I  spent  in  my  garden,  one  hour  after 
supper  three  days  in  a  week,  was  more  pleasure  than 
work.  After  being  in  the  house  all  day,  it  was  a  pleas- 
ure to  get  out  in  the  fresh  air  with  a  hoe,  dress  up  my 
garden  and  flower  bed,  cut  a  nice  bouquet,  pull  some 
fresh  vegetables,  or  gather  a  pan  of  berries  to  tempt 
the  appetite  at  breakfast. 

The  only  tools  I  used  were  hoe,  rake,  shovel  and 
hand  cultivator.     I  am  a  cooper's  wife  with  eight  chil- 


PRIZE  GARDENING  FOR  WOMEN 


139 


dren  and  have  no  help  but  the  children,  but  I  could 
always  find  time  to  hoe  the  garden.  I  know  it  will  pay 
anyone  having  one  thousand  square  feet  of  land,  or 
even  half  that  amount,  to  raise  their  own  vegetables. 
This  year  when  harvest  came  and  lots  of  workmen,,  I 


MRS.  CALKINS  PICKING  BERRIES  FOR  SUPPER 


did  not  need  to  depend  on  the  truckman  as  usual,  but 
went  into  my  garden  and  gathered  nice,  fresh  vege- 
tables. My  pocketbook  showed  the  difference.  Income, 
seventeen  dollars  and  sixty-two  cents ;  cost,  seven  dol- 
lars and  eighty-nine  cents ;  profit,  nearly  ten  dollars. 


140  PRIZE     GARDENING 

A  Productive  Southern  Garden,  making  a  return 
of  three  hundred  and  fifty-two  dollars  and  ninety-two 
cents  at  cost  of  eighty-four  dollars  and  thirty-five  cents, 
was  entered  by  Mrs.  J.  W.  Bryan  of  Georgia,  winner 
of  one  of  the  Allen  special  prizes.  The  location  is 
Lookout  mountain,  a  sandy  loam,  with  clay  subsoil; 
area,  about  one  acre,  manured  with  plenty  of  stable 
and  poultry  manure.  The  tools  were  a  bull  tongue 
plow,  a  horse  hoe,  a  wheel  hoe  and  the  common  hand 
garden  tools,  all  together  valued  at  twenty-three  dol- 
lars. Northern  seed  was  used,  costing  thirty-one 
dollars.  Income  began  April  15  with  asparagus,  fol- 
lowed by  radish,  mustard  greens  and  spinach.  The  first 
Clipper  peas  were  sold  May  13,  and  subsequent  sales 
included  a  great  variety  of  garden  products.  The 
family  had  all  the  garden  stuff  they  could  use  and  a 
surplus  for  the  neighbors.  Cost,  thirty  dollars  and 
eighty-three  cents  ;  income,  thirty-nine  dollars  and  fifty- 
seven  cents.  The  illustration  shows  Mrs.  Bryan's 
homelike  residence. 

Since  the  garden  contest,  writes  Mrs.  Bryan,  we 
never  feel  a  drouth  in  the  garden,  because  I  learned 
then  that  a  dust  mulch,  formed  by  the  weekly  use  of 
the  horse  hoe  over  the  whole  garden,  prevents  an  injury 
to  the  plants  by  even  a  protracted  dryness.  I  find  also 
an  awakened  interest  in  my  neighbors  in  their  gardens 
by  the  success  of  my  garden,  while  theirs  suffered  from 
the  drouth. 

Perseverance  Under  Difficulty,  was  the  experience 
of  Mrs.  G.  H.  Berger,  CaHfornia,  who  made  a  plucky 
fight  for  her  garden  against  great  odds,  and  who 
writes  :  "  I  have  the  satisfaction  of  knowing  my  garden 
would  have  been  a  great  success  had  I  been  able  to 
keep  away  the  vermin  and  the  cows."  Roots  of  fern 
and  poison  oak  filled  the  soil.  Rabbits  ate  the  peas, 
melons  and  peanut  vines,  moles  devoured  the  beans, 


PRIZE  GARDENING   FOR   WOMEN 


141 


while  robber  cows  and  birds  stole  the  most  of  what 
was  left. 

An  extended  and  hig-hly  detailed  account  of  gar- 
den operations  came  from  two  ladies  of  New  York 
state,  L.  A.  and  E.  S.  Denslow,  receiving  a  five-dollar 
Rawson  prize.  Dry  weather  and  scarcity  of  labor  were 
serious  drawbacks,  but  from  the  three  thousand  seven 


HOME  OF  MRS.  J.  W.  BRYAN 


hundred  square  feet  came  an  income  of  forty-seven 
dollars  and  sixty-nine  cents,  at  a  cost  of  twenty-five 
dollars  and  ninety-nine  cents.  Profit,  twenty-one  dol- 
lars and  seventy  cents.  The  growers  considered  most 
of  the  crops  unsatisfactory,  but  were  pleased  with  the 
profuse  yield  of  sweet  peas,  of  which  great  quantities 
were  grown  for  ornament. 


142  PRIZE     GARDENING 

Mrs.  Sarah  C.  Miller,  Minnesota,  took  excellent 
care  of  her  half  acre,  but  spent  a  total  of  only  sixteen 
and  one-half  days,  which  she  charged  at  fifty  cents  per 
day.  The  produce  amounted  to  forty-six  dollars  and 
fifty-eight  cents  and  expenses  were  twenty-one  dollars 
and  fourteen  cents.  The  account  was  a  five-dollar 
prize  winner. 


CHAPTER  X 

YOUNG   HORTICULTURISTS 

The  garden  is  Nature's  best  school.  As  might  be 
expected  from  such  a  teacher,  the  accompHshmcnts 
conferred  on  the  zealous  pupils  are  not  showy,  novel  or 
pretentious,  but  solid,  simple  and  nobly  essential.  The 
worthy  pupil  learns  to  love  his  teacher ;  an  acquirement 
of  itself  a  lifelong  comfort.  He  is  taught  patience, 
mdustry,  perseverance,  steadiness ;  learns^hat  what  is 
sown  and  tended  must  be  harvested.  The  gardener 
from  choice  is  a  safe  man  ;  kind,  domestic,  reliable,  not 
changeable,  choleric  or  vicious.  The  boy  who  has  a 
garden  attends  also  the  business  school  of  the  farm, 
and  absorbs  skill  in  planning,  systemizing,  self-disci- 
pline, enterprise,  buying  and  selling ;  all  of  which  will 
be  of  the  utmost  value  in  any  line  of  life.  Greatest 
gift  of  all,  the  spring-like,  all-conquering  health  and 
vigor  which  gardening  promotes  more  surely  than  any 
other  useful  occupation. 

Prominent  and  successful  gardeners  have  usually 
begun  their  work  in  that  line  early  in  life.  Many  of 
them  began  with  the  foundation  of  their  business 
already  started  by  a  father  to  whose  experience  and 
capital  they  have  added  youthful  energ}^ 

A  good  number  of  the  contestants  for  prizes  were 
young  men  and  boys.  Unfortunately  many  who  had 
first-rate  gardens  took  no  prize  because  of  some  over- 
sight or  flaw  in  the  account ;  defects  due  to  lack  of 
experience. 

A  Zealous  Yoiincr  Gardener,  George  Osborne  of 
Illinois,   made   his   half   acre   pay   him   seventy-eight 


144 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


dollars,  of  which  fifty-seven  dollars  was  net  profit,  and 
he  became  so  enthusiastic  with  his  experience  that  he 
planned  to  cultivate  a  larger  piece  the  next  year.  His 
small  brothers  were  hired  to  help,  and  they  also  became 
interested  and  will  have  gardens  of  their  own.  These 
three  young  fellows  will  make  their  gardens  pay,  but 
the  real  and  lasting  benefit  will  consist  in  a  training 
and  experience  not  to  be  bought  with  money. 


ill 

^  '^M 

"'n%             r                         ^ 

HW^  Trii^^^'^S 

^^f-  ^^'^St 

^.^   -si 

w^ 

•^  "^-.-4" 

'"■•■'.   " 

GEORGE  OSBORNE'S  HOME  MARKET 


Manure  was  obtained  from  the  poultry  house  and 
ashes  from  the  wood  stoves,  but  a  mistake  was  made  in 
that  the  two  were  mixed  before  using,  thus  impairing 
the  value  of  the  manure.  Many  vegetables  were  sold 
at  the  store  and  pay  taken  in  groceries.  Melons  were 
a  great  success,  but  George  suspects  that  some  of  them 
found  a  home  market  without  his  knowledge.  Carrots, 
turnips  and  late  radishes  were  stored  in  barrels  sunk 


YOUNG    HORTICULTURISTS  I45 

in  the  ground,  and  the  plan  was  considered  better  than 
storage  in  pits,  and  also  more  convenient.  In  planting 
the  following  year  this  young  gardener  would  plow  the 
fall  before ;  would  lay  out  a  plan  of  the  garden  during 
the  winter ;  would  have  near  together  such  crops  as 
are  to  be  followed  by  second  crops,  thus  allowing  the 
second  crops  to  be  cultivated  in  a  large  plot  with  long 
rows ;  would  also  put  together  crops  to  be  left  over 
winter,  and  perennial  crops. 

One  of  the  Smaller  Gardens  entered  in  the  contest 
was  that  of  Oscar  P.  Roberts  of  Audubon  county,  Iowa. 
It  contained  one  thousand  two  hundred  and  twenty-five 
square  feet,  or  a  little  more  than  one-thirty-fifth  of  an 
acre,  and  was  planted  and  cultivated  during  the  spare 
moments  of  the  noon  hour  and  evenings  after  work  in 
the  fields.  The  plat  was  valued  at  one  dollar  and  fifty 
cents,  and  had  been  cleared  of  hazel  brush  and  planted 
to  a  garden  several  years  before.  The  tools  used  were 
a  hoe,  spade,  homemade  wooden  rake  and  Planet  Jr 
garden  plow.  Early  in  April  three  large  loads  of  well- 
rotted  manure  were  drawn  out  and  placed  in  three  piles. 
On  the  22d,  the  ground  was  plowed  seven  inches  deep 
with  a  common  plow.  A  piece  was  leveled  and  raked 
ofif  and  four  rows  each  of  Yellow  Danvers,  Red  Weth- 
ersfield  and  Mammoth  Silver  King  onion  and  one  row 
each  of  Early  Long  Scarlet  Short  Top  Improved 
and  Early  Turnip  White  Tipped  radish  and  Little 
Gem  peas  were  planted ;  rows  sixteen  inches  apart, 
seeds  dropped  by  hand  and  covered  about  one-half  inch 
deep,  except  the  peas,  which  were  covered  three  inches. 
On  the  28thj  two  rows  of  salsify  were  planted.  IVe- 
paratory  to  outdoor  work  a  packet  of  Golden  Yellow 
celery  was  in  March  sown  in  a  box  in  the  house  and 
transplanted  April  26  to  a  cold  frame  and  the  open 
garden,  setting  the  plants  three  inches  apart  each  way 
and  shading  with  a  little  brush  to  prevent  wilting  by 


146 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


the  hot  sun.  A  row  of  Seibert's  Early  Hma  beans  was 
planted  May  i  in  hills  two  and  one-half  feet  apart,  three 
beans  to  the  hill,  and  covered  one  and  one-half  inches 
deep,  but  these  rotted  and  in  place  of  them  some  onion 


PEPPERS  SIX  INCHES  LONG  GROWN  BY  OSCAR  ROBERTS 


sets  were  planted  on  the  loth.  The  peas  came  up  in 
six  days,  the  salsify  in  twelve,  while  the  Early  Scarlet 
Turnip  radishes  were  fit  to  eat  in  twenty-six  days 
after  planting. 


YOUNG    HORTICULTURISTS  \\J 

As  was  to  be  expected  the  grass  and  weeds  grew 
quickly,  so  the  Planet  Jr  hoe  was  used  on  the  i6th, 
and  again  on  the  i8th,  the  whole  garden  being  culti- 
vated in  less  than  an  hour  each  time.  Two  rows  of 
radishes  were  planted  at  this  time  and  a  row  of  toma- 
toes was  set  the  22d.  The  latter  were  about  a  foot  high 
and  were  taken  from  a  hotbed.  A  trench  was  dug  and 
the  plants  laid  down  in  this,  only  the  tip  being  left  out. 
A  row  of  Flat  Dutch  cabbage  and  two  rows  of  salsify 
were  planted  the  23d,  and  a  row  and  a  half  each  of 
peppers  and  Early  Jersey  Wakefield  cabbage  were  set 
the  27th.  The  garden  was  now  planted  except  the 
celery,  and  all  that  remained  to  do  was  to  cultivate  it 
well  and  harvest  the  crops.  The  Planet  Jr  hoe  was 
used  frequently,  but  hand  weeding  had  to  be  resorted 
to  with  the  onions,  salsify  and  radishes. 

The  lima  beans  finally  came  up  May  14,  and  to 
support  them  the  young  dead  peach  trees  that  were 
quite  branchy  were  set.  The  onion  sets  were  used  as 
needed,  tlie  remainder  being  pulled  on  the  15th  and 
the  ground  planted  to  celery.  A  trench  was  dug  one 
foot  deep  and  wide,  and  filled  in  five  inches  with  good 
rich  soil.  The  plants  were  set  up  to  the  stems  and  a 
little  ridge  n.ade  along  the  center  of  the  row  so  that 
in  hard,  dashing  rains  the  water  would  run  ofif  to  the 
sides  of  the  trench,  thus  saving  the  soil  near  the  plants 
from  settling  dow^n  hard  and  baking  around  them.  The 
plants  were  set  six  inches  apart  in  the  row. 

The  first  peas  were  picked  July  i,  the  early  cab- 
bage was  ready  by  the  15th,  and  the  lima  beans  by  the 
jnd  of  the  month.  The  tomatoes  were  staked  the  12th 
by  driving  stakes  on  each  side  of  the  row,  and  on  these 
nailing  poles  abou*  one  foot  from  the  ground.  They 
began  ripening  August  8,  and  by  the  14th,  fifteen 
pounds  had  been  picked  and  sold  at  three  cents  per 
pound.     The  celery  w^as  watered  frequently,  the  water 


148  PRIZE    GARDENING 

being  hauled  in  a  barrel  in  the  morning  and  left  stand- 
ing all  day  in  the  sun  to  warm  up.  The  celery  was 
banked  the  middle  of  September  and  the  onions  pulled 
and  harvested. 

This  garden  was  not  large,  nor  was  there  a  great 
variety  of  vegetables  raised,  yet  it  seemed  to  satisfy 
the  needs  of  Mr.  Roberts'  family.  If  it  had  contained 
beets,  beans,  sweet  corn,  squashes,  cucumbers,  carrots, 
lettuce,  melons  and  more  peas,  it  would  have  been  more 
satisfactory  to  most  people,  yet  there  are  some  who  do 
not  care  for  these  vegetables  and  are  satisfied  with  a 
more  limited  variety.  The  productions  of  the  garden 
were  not  large,  and  yet  when  spread  over  the  entire 
season,  they  gave  considerable  "  green  stuff  "  to  mix 
with  the  "  pork  and  potatoes,"  which  constitute  the  diet 
of  so  many  farmers'  families.  There  were  gathered 
eighty-six  dozen  radishes,  forty-five  dozen  of  green 
and  three  and  one-fourth  bushels  of  onions,  one  peck 
of  peas,  sixteen  head  of  cabbage,  sixty-five  pounds  of 
tomatoes,  one  and  one-half  pints  of  cured  lima  beans, 
five  dozen  green  and  two  pecks  of  pickling  peppers, 
two  ounces  sweet  pea  seed  and  many  flowers,  forty- 
eight  dozen  salsify  and  fifty  bunches  of  celery.  The 
value  of  these  products  amounted  to  thirteen  dollars 
and  thirty-six  cents.  The  labor  expended  on  garden 
was  six  days,  four  and  one-fourth  hours,  and  with  two 
and  one-half  hours  of  team  work  amounted  to  eight 
dollars  and  sixty  cents.  The  manure  was  valued  at 
thirty  cents,  the  seeds  at  eighty-five  cents,  while  one 
dollar  would  be  a  fair  price  for  the  use  of  the  tools  and 
the  land.  This  brings  the  cost  up  to  ten  dollars  and 
seventy-five  cents,  and  leaves  a  net  profit  of  two  dollars 
and  sixty-one  cents,  and  pay  for  his  own  labor  which 
he  could  not  have  earned  otherwise.  In  reality  the 
garden  earned  him  ten  dollars  and  eighty-six  cents. 


YOUNG    HORTICULTURISTS 


149 


The  net  profit  was  at  the  late  of  ninety-two  dollars  and 
thirty-five  cents  per  acre. 

]Mr.  Roberts  closes  his  report  by  saying:  ''The 
work  has  been  interesting  and  instructive,  and  if  1  had 
nothing  else  but  tlie  knowledge  gained  to  show  for  my 
few  days'  work  I  would  feel  amply  repaid  for  my 
eft'orts.     The  garden  has  proved  both  pleasurable  and 


A  LARGE  EXHIBIT  I?\      \-M\lI 


profitable.  It  was  profitable  to  me  because  I  noted 
carefully  the  results  of  my  experiments  and  stowed 
them  away  in  my  memory  for  use  in  the  years  to  come. 
It  was  profitable  to  the  family  because  it  furnished  a 
liberal  supply  of  vegetables  all  summer." 

An  Enterprising  Youth  of  the  Hawkeye  state, 
Willie  Fay  of  Independence,  Iowa,  secured  one  of  the 
regular  prizes  of  five  dollars  for  his  garden  story.     His 


I50 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


one-third  acre  produced  vegetables  valued  at  forty- 
three  dollars  and  eighty-five  cents.  He  applied  four 
loads  of  barn  manure  and  one  load  of  hen  manure. 
The  wheel  hoe^  he  thinks,  enabled  him  sometimes  to 
accomplish  a  day's  work  in  two  hours.  Melons  were 
the  most  successful  crop,  and  he  saved  plenty  of  seed 
for  another  year.  Between  the  severe  drouth  and  some 
robber  cows  which  ate  twenty  head  of  cabbages,  Willie 
had  his  troubles,  but  father  and  brother  helped  take  care 


WEALTH II  K.   PALMER 


of  the  garden,  and  the  owner  was  one  of  the  few  juve- 
nile prize  winners. 

A  Boy  Gardener  Who  Won  a  five-dollar  prize  is 
Walter  R.  Palmer,  Victoria,  British  Columbia.  Some 
of  the  work  was  done  by  a  Chinaman  at  seventy-five 
cents  a  day.  But  another  phase  of  the  Chinese  prob- 
lem proved  unfavorable  to  profits,  since  Walter  com- 
plains that  "  so  many  Chinamen  here  make  their  living 
by  growing  and  peddling  fresh  vegetables  that  it  does 
not  pay  white  people  to  grow  them  for  sale."     Such 


YOUNG    HURTICLLTLRISTS  I5I 

crops  as  lettuce,  cabbai2:e,  spinach  and  asparagus  seemed 
to  thrive  best.  The  area  of  one  tliousand  six  hundred 
and  twenty  square  feet  produced  two  dollars  and  thirty- 
five  cents  worth,  and  is  charged  with  a  cost  of  only 
fifty-five  cents,  but  this  amount  could  scarcely  have 
been  meant  to  include  the  sixteen  Jiours'  labor  which 
is  itemized  in  the  account. 


CHAPTER  XI 

GARDEN    IRRIGATION 

Water  was  applied  artificially  to  a  very  Large  num- 
ber of  the  competing  gardens,  some  using  it  only  at 
time  of  transplanting,  or  to  hasten  seed  germination. 
But  at  least  one  in  ten  of  the  prize  winners  made 
irrigation  an  important  feature. 

In  the  older  irrigated  sections  like  California  and 
Colorado,  an  artificial  supply  of  moisture  for  fruit  and 
vegetables  appears  almost  a  matter  of  course ;  so  much 
so  that  in  some  instances  the  narrators  failed  to  explain 
the  method  intelligibly,  leaving  the  process  to  be 
inferred  from  the  brief  allusions  made  in  the  daily 
notes.  In  all  such  cases  it  is  probable  that  the  water 
was  turned  into  the  furrows  from  the  irrigating  ditch 
by  the  simple  methods  hereafter  described.  Given  an 
abundance  of  water,  irrigation  is  by  no  means  a  diffi- 
cult and  complicated  operation.  As  the  accounts  show, 
the  time  required  for  the  work  is  brief  as  compared 
with  other  garden  operations,  and  anyone  with  a  fair 
am.ount  of  general  information  on  the  subject  should 
have  no  trouble  even  at  the  start. 

Often  a  good  chance  for  irrigation  has  been  neg- 
lected because  of  failure  to  realize  the  immense  advan- 
tage which  a  good  water  supply  gives  the  grower  of 
fruit  and  vegetables.  Even  in  sections  where  the  rain- 
fall is  large  enough  for  the  common  farm  crops,  many 
prominent  gardeners  declare  irrigation  a  positive  neces- 
sity for  intensive  gardening  on  a  large  scale.  In  the 
semi-arid  parts  of  the  west  and  northwest,  irrigation 


154  PRIZE     GARDENING 

is  becoming  firmly  established  and  many  of  the  prize 
winners  there  found  it  a  great  aid. 

Water  Saved  the  Garden. — A  very  fine  garden 
was  grown  by  W.  T.  Brickey,  Hitchcock  county, 
Nebraska,  from  whose  description  a  good  idea  may  be 
obtained  of  the  special  difficulties  and  methods. 

Owing  to  the  hot  summer  weather  and  the  light 
rainfall    in    this    section,    says    Mr.    Brickey,    it    has 


A  NEBRASKA  GARDEN  SPOT  BEFORE  IRRIGATION 

been  found  impracticable  to  grow  a  garden,  only 
in  exceptional  years,  without  irrigation.  In  addi- 
tion to  this,  of  late  years  we  have  been  afflicted 
with  a  pest  of  grasshoppers,  thus  making  the  grow- 
ing of  a  garden  increasingly  difficult,  so  much  so 
that  few  farmers  even  attempt  growing  anything 
in    this    line    more    than    Irish    potatoes,    sweet    corn 


GARDEN     IRRIGATION  1 55 

and  perhaps  watermelons,  and  even  with  these, 
failures  have  been  more  numerous  than  otherwise.  To 
combat  the  drouth  and  outwit  the  grasshoppers  are 
tlierefore  the  problems  to  be  solved. 

I  level  the  garden  by  using  a  common  road  scraper, 
taking  soil  off  high  places  and  filling  in  low  places, 
thus  preparing  the  ground  for  irrigation. 

The  system  of  irrigation  will  be  easily  understood 
from  the  accompanying  photograph.  It  contemplates 
only  the  use  of  surplus  water  not  needed  by  the  stock. 
The  well  is  sixty-one  feet  deep.  The  pump  is  an  ordi- 
nary force  pump,  two  and  one-half  cylinder,  placed 
two  feet  from  the  bottom  of  the  well,  with  one  and 
one-fourth-inch  pipe.  The  windmill  is  a  Perkins  ten- 
foot,  straight  stroke,  wood  wheel,  mounted  on  a  twenty- 
two  and  one-half-foot  steel  tower.  The  water  is  forced 
through  an  inch  pipe,  from  a  back  cock  in  the  pumn, 
to  a  trough  in  the  milkhouse,  keeping  the  milk  cool  an  1 
sweet  during  the  hottest  weather,  and  from  thence  over- 
flows into  a  common  round  stock  tank  ten  feet  in 
diameter.  Water  not  required  for  the  stock  was 
siphoned  out  with  a  three-quarter-inch  hose  and  con- 
ducted to  the  garden.  Frequently  the  hose  was  attached 
directly  to  the  pump,  but  this  was  not  so  satisfactory, 
as  the  supply  of  water  was  not  so  constant,  and  resulted 
in  the  upper  end  of  the  row  getting  most  of  the  water, 
except  when  the  wind  blew  strong  and  steady.  How- 
ever, I  satisfied  myself  that  cold  water,  taken  directly 
from  the  w^ell,  w^as  as  good  for  irrigation  as  that  that 
had  become  warm  by  standing  in  the  tank.  The  photo- 
graph shows  the  process  of  irrigating.  The  ditch 
between  the  rows  was  made  by  the  cultivator,  the  teeth 
being  set  close  together,  and  the  w^ater  running  from 
the  tank  through  the  hose  into  the  ditch.  Irrigation 
was  given  at  any  time  day  or  night  that  the  water  could 


GARDEN     IRRIGATION  157 

be  secured.  The  dry,  porous  subsoil  easily  absorbed 
any  surplus.     The  difficulty  was  in  getting  enough. 

I  have  experimented  in  a  limited  way  in  the  details 
of  irrigation.  You  will  observe  in  the  photograph  two 
galvanized  iron  water  tanks  in  which  water  has  been 
kept  during  the  season.  Cow  dung  has  been  soaked 
in  the  water,  which  reached  the  plant  in  a  liquid  form. 
At  intervals  when  hoeing  I  have  poured  it  around  a 
hill  of  pumpkins,  a  hill  of  watermelons,  a  hill  of  squash, 
a  hill  of  com,  a  hill  of  potatoes,  a  hill  of  cucumbers,  a 
hill  of  cabbage,  ten  onions,  ten  beets,  a  mangel  wurzel, 
a  rutabaga,  and  instead  of  pouring  the  water  on  the  hill, 
a  basin  was  made  in  the  ground  near  the  vegetables 
that  would  hold  one  pail  of  water ;  two  holes  were  made 
leading  from  the  basin  into  the  manure  directly  under 
the  plants.  Surface  watering  causes  the  earth  to  crust 
over  and  allows  the  roots  to  run  near  the  surface. 
Unless  the  top  of  the  ground  is  kept  wet  the  plants 
suffer  for  want  of  moisture.  My  method  sends  the 
water  under  the  hill  and  the  roots  dive  deep  to  reach  it. 
This  method  makes  strong,  vigorous,  productive  vines 
and  plants,  and  the  yield  one-third  larger  and  one-third 
more  in  quantity.  The  hill  of  pumj)kins  gave  one 
pumpkin  weighing  eighty-one  pounds,  watermelon 
weighing  forty  pounds,  squash,  corn,  potatoes,  cucum- 
ber, cabbage,  onions,  beets,  carrots,  all  were  one-third 
larger  than  those  not  irrigated. 

The  ideal  preparation  of  ground,  according  to  my 
view,  would  be  to  begin  in  the  fall  and  thoroughly 
pulverize  the  surface  as  deep  as  possible  with  the  disk 
harrow.  Then  plow  six  or  seven  inches  deep  and 
repeat  the  pulverizing.  Plow  again  crosswise,  leaving 
the  ground  just  as  turned  over  by  the  plow  until  spring, 
then  repeat  the  pulverizing  process.  This  would  give 
a  deep  seedbed  thoroughly  fined  from  top  to  bottom. 

Irrigation  should  have  been  given  during  the  early 


158  PRIZE     GARDENING 

part  of  the  season  when  the  windmill  was  standing  idle. 
I  did  not  understand  then  what  an  enormous  amount 
of  water  is  required  for  cabbage,  and  as  frequent  light 
showers  were  falling,  I  supposed  the  ground  was  suffi- 
ciently wet. 

In  irrigating  tomatoes,  a  ditch  was  first  made  with 
the  cultivator  in  the  middle  between  the  rows,  using  the 
three  teeth  set  close  together,  or  sometimes  the  large 
tooth  alone.  One  end  of  the  hose  was  then  placed  in 
the  ditch  and  the  other  in  the  tank,  making  a  siphon. 
The  water  was  allowed  to  run  in  this  ditch  from  two 
to  six  hours,  according  to  the  supply  of  water  available 
and  the  requirements  of  the  balance  of  the  garden. 

A  net  profit  of  about  fifty-four  dollars  is  recorded 
from  Mr.  Brickey's  garden,  but  he  believes  that  the 
experience  gained  and  the  pleasure  of  watching  and 
caring  for  the  crops  amounted  to  far  more  real  value 
than  the  cash  balance.  A  good  garden  was  so  rare  in 
his  section  that  visitors  came  in  considerable  numbers. 
His  calendar,  condensed,  is  of  interest  as  showing  a 
gardener's  routine  in  the  semi-arid  section : 

February. — Made  first  order  for  seeds. 

March. — Constructed  a  hotbed  and  cold  frame  No. 
I,  starting  in  these  frames  cabbages,  lettuce,  onions, 
tomatoes  and  radishes.  Also  began  the  preparation 
of  the  soil  of  the  garden. 

April. — Completed  preparation  of  soil,  trans- 
planted cabbage  from  cold  frame  to  open  ground,  sent 
second  order  for  seeds,  sowed  onions,  lettuce  and  rad- 
ishes in  the  garden,  constructed  a  cold  frame  for  sprout- 
ing sweet  potatoes  in  the  bed,  began  irrigating  the  early 
cabbage,  bought  drill,  wheel  hoe,  etc.,  fifty  feet  of  hose 
and  a  lawn  sprinkler. 

May. — Completed  transplanting  early  cabbage, 
began  transplanting  tomatoes  to  open  ground,  sowed 
early  peas,  early  beans  and  planted  early  potatoes  and 


GARUE.N     IKRKJATION  159 

early  sweet  corn,  transplanted  onions  from  cold  frame 
to  open  ground,  made  second  sowing  of  peas,  made  a 
cold  frame  for  planting  melons  and  planted  seed 
therein,  sowed  cabbage  in  open  ground  for  late  cabbage, 
cultivated   all   growing   crops. 

June. — Transplanted  melon  plants  and  planted 
melon  seed  in  open  ground,  completed  transplanting 
tomato  plants,  sowed  late  beans,  thinned  onions,  trans- 
planted sweet  potato  plants  and  late  cabbage  plants, 
applied  insecticide  for  cabbage  worms,  cultivated  all 
growing  crops  and  irrigated  as  far  as  possible. 

July. — Sowed  turnips,  also  onions  for  sets,  culti- 
vated growing  crops  and  irrigated. 

August  and  September. — Ditto. 

October. — Ditto.  Also  removed  all  remaining 
crops  from  the  ground,  completing  the  season's 
operations. 

In  the  Loz^'er  San  Gabriel  Valley,  a  part  of  one 
of  the  most  famous  irrigated  sections  of  the  Pacific 
coast,  was  a  thrifty  and  profitable  garden  managed  by 
E.  H.  Ashley,  Rivera,  California,  winner  of  the 
seventh  prize. 

The  garden  is  in  \\'alnut  irrigation  district,  obtain- 
ing water  from  the  San  Gabriel  river  by  means  of  a 
dam,  the  water  being  conveyed  in  dirt  ditches.  The 
preceding  winter  and  spring  (our  season  of  rain)  being 
exceptionally  dry,  irrigation  has  been  practiced  this 
year  more  or  less  all  the  time.  In  ordinary  seasons, 
however,  irrigation  is  resorted  to  from  about  May  i 
to  the  end  of  September.  The  water  right  is  paid  for 
with  the  land,  the  water  being  practically  free  to  the 
users,  a  nominal  charge  being  made  of  fifteen  cents  per 
hour  for  a  "  head  "  of  one  hundred  to  one  hundred  and 
fifty  "miners'  inches"  (or  one  thousand  one  hundred 
and  sixty  to  one  thousand  seven  hundred  and  forty 
gallons  per  minute).     F'or  garden  purposes  have  used 


l60  PRIZE     GARDENING 

but  half  a  head  at  seven  and  one-half  cents  per  hour. 

The  bare  land  itself,  including  water  right,  would 
sell  for  three  hundred  dollars  per  acre  (the  contestant 
having  a  mortgage  of  two  hundred  and  twenty  dollars 
per  acre  on  ten  acres).  It  would  rent  at  about  twenty- 
five  dollars  per  acre.  Interest  at  eight  per  cent  per 
annum  net.  The  whole  garden  equals  eighty-nine- 
one-hundredths  of  an  acre,  value  two  hundred  and 
sixty-seven  dollars. 

The  work  of  vegetable  growing  in  California  is 
mostly  in  the  hands  of  Chinese,  who  are  behind  the 
times  in  regard  to  methods  of  work,  which  makes  their 
competition  less  keen  than  is  usually  supposed.  The 
climate  of  southern  California  is  not  quite  so  favorable 
for  vegetable  growth  as  for  trees.  Plants  take  much 
longer  to  come  to  maturity  than  in  the  south  or  east, 
owing  to  the  cold  nights  through  the  spring,  causing 
the  ground  to  warm  up  very  slowly. 

The  planting  season  in  this  almost  winterless 
climate  began  the  preceding  October,  when  cabbages 
were  sown  in  seedbed  for  early  transplanting.  Garden 
work  during  December,  January  and  February  was 
much  like  that  of  March,  April  and  May  in  the  east. 
Asparagus,  rhubarb,  turnips,  radishes  and  onions  were 
ready  to  be  gathered  in  March.  Tender  plants  were 
set  in  April  and  grew  slowly  because  of  cool  nights. 
Tomato  seeds  were  drilled  in  the  open  ground,  April 
12,  setting  the  drill  the  same  as  for  radish  seed,  which 
proved  about  thick  enough,  and  the  plants  were  ready, 
for  setting  May  25. 

Rainfall  from  December  20  to  November  21  was 
only  seven  to  eight  inches ;  a  rather  dry  season  for  the 
locality.  The  time  spent  irrigating  was  twenty-two 
and  one-half  hours,  charged  at  one  dollar  and  sixty- 
nine  cents  or  seven  and  one-half  to  eight  cents  per  hour 
for  the  water,  half  a  head  being  used  for  the  garden. 


GARDEN    IRRIGATION 


161 


This  quantity  is  from  five  hundred  and  eighty  to  eight 
hundred  and  seventy  gallons  per  minute,  a  sufficient 
tiow  to  tlood  parts  ol  the  garden  when  desired,  as 
shown  in  the  picture  of  the  onion  patch  under  irriga- 
tion. When  putting  in  a  second  crop  the  ground  was 
usually  flooded  as  a  preliminary  step.  The  onions  and 
the  berries  were  irrigated  six  times,  or  monthly  from 


IRRIGATING  KGG  PLANTS 


February  to  September,  from  one-half  to  one  hour  each 
time.  Most  crops  w-ere  flooded  an  hour  at  planting 
time.  Tomatoes  and  cowpeas  were  watered  once,  sweet 
potatoes  and  cabbage  twice,  peppers  four  times,  egg 
plants  five,  onions  and  fruit  six  times.  One  of  the 
illustrations  shows  the  irrigation  of  egg  plants,  in 
furrows  between  the  rows. 


l62  PRIZE     GARDENING 

Egg  plant  seems  to  have  been  the  best  paying 
crop,  having  sold  about  three  thousand  seven  hundred 
pounds  of  fruit  at  average  price  of  two  and  one-tliird 
cents  per  pound  for  eighty-seven  dollars  and  twenty- 
six  cents,  and  a  net  profit  of  twenty-four  dollars.  Pep- 
pers averaged  about  the  same  price  per  pound.  Toma- 
toes brought  fifteen  cents  per  hundred  and  sweet 
potatoes  one  to  two  and  three-fourths  cents  per  pound. 

The  net  profit  of  this  garden  was  fifty-three  dol- 
lars and  five  cents,  but  as  Mr.  Ashley  did  all  the  labor 
himself  his  actual  returns,  after  paying  bills,  were  two 
hundred  and  ten  dollars  and  twenty-eight  cents. 

In  the  Mountain  Section. — Among  the  difficulties 
which  hinder  the  gardener  in  Idaho  are  the  cold  sum- 
mer nights  and  frosts,  wdiich  conditions  make  such 
crops  as  tomatoes,  €:gg  plants  and  sweet  corn  hard  to 
raise,  but  correspondingly  high  in  price.  Mrs.  W.  S. 
Jackson,  Idaho  Falls,  Idaho,  tried  raising  these  tender 
vegetables  in  an  irrigated  garden,  but  frost  killed  most 
of  them.  Other  years  she  has  had  better  success.  The 
hardy  plants  like  cabbage  did  well  and  this  vegetable 
occupied  a  greater  part  of  the  garden.  Receipts  from 
the  tract  of  one  acre  were  one  hundred  and  ninety 
dollars  and  two  cents ;  expenses,  one  hundred  and  three 
dollars  and  twenty-seven  cents ;  profit,  eighty-six  dol- 
lars and  seventy-five  cents.     Writes  Mrs.  Jackson  : 

After  we  had  plowed  our  garden  we  harrowed  it 
crosswise  of  the  plowing,  after  which  we  rolled  it. 
Then  w^e  take  a  Hster  plow  and  ridge  it;  that  is,  we 
plow  a  furrow  about  every  four  feet.  This  is  to  make 
the  ditches  for  irrigating.  As  this  leaves  the  ridges  too 
high  and  uneven,  we  take  the  harrow  again  and  slant 
the  teeth  pretty  well  back  and  go  over  the  ground 
lengthwise  of  the  rows.  Now  it  is  ready  to  seed  ;  with 
a  drill  it  does  not  take  long.  We  do  not  use  the  marker 
on  these  ridges,  but  take  the  drill  and  keep  it  as  near 


GARDEN    IRRIGATION  163 

six  inches  from  the  edge  as  possible,  putting  two  rows 
on  each  ridge.  The  ridges  are  just  wide  enough  to 
average  four  to  the  rod.  We  wait  for  the  plants  to 
appear  before  we  do  any  irrigating,  as  that  chills  the 
ground  too  much  for  the  seeds  to  come  well,  and  we 
can  depend  on  enough  spring  moisture  to  bring 
them  up. 

When  transplanting  the  cabbage  to  the  garden,  we 
set  the  plants  two  feet  apart  in  the  row  and  two  rows 
on  each  ridge,  setting  the  plants  in  the  second  row  so 
they  are  halfway  between  the  plants  in  the  first  row. 
As  soon  as  a  ridge  is  completed,  the  water  is  turned 
into  the  ditches  each  side  of  it  and  allowed  to  run  until 
the  ground  is  thoroughly  soaked.  Then  they  are 
watered  about  once  a  week  after  that,  depending  some- 
what on  the  weather. 

Taught  by  Practice. — After  twenty  years'  expe- 
rience irrigating  garden  crops,  L.  Matteson,  Sturges, 
South  Dakota,  thinks  the  best  plan  is  to  lay  out  the 
garden  in  diagonal  check  rows  as  illustrated.  The 
water  can  be  turned  in  either  direction  and  the  crops 
may  be  cultivated  in  three  directions.  Some  crops, 
especially  tomatoes,  are  planted  closely  in  double  rows, 
leaving  a  double  space  between  each  pair  of  rows. 
Water  is  let  down  the  narrow  space  between  the  two 
rows,  thus,  in  Mr.  Alatteson's  opinion,  saving  one-half 
the  water.  To  prevent  tomato  rot,  he  irrigates  thor- 
oughly when  the  clusters  begin  to  form.  Prices  for 
tomatoes  in  his  market  were  one  to  two  cents  a  pound. 
Irrigation  every  ten  days  was  found  also  to  check  the 
lice  and  worms  on  cabbages,  but  if  the  lice  were  once 
allowed  a  start  the  wetting  afterward  did  no  good. 

A  Small  Irrigated  Garden,  fifty-four  by  sixty  feet, 
entered  by  S.  W.  Damon,  Tehama  county,  California, 
produced  twelve  dollars'  worth  of  vegetables  at  a  cost 
of  five  dollars  and  sixty-seven  cents.     The  land  cost 


♦»  .  «   »  •  •  •  r 


GAKDEN    IRRIGATION  1 65 

forty  dollars  per  acre  and  twenty  dollars  per  acre  more 
to  clear  off  trees  and  brush.  Soil  is  heavy  clay  loam 
nine  feet  deep. 

For  irrigation,  the  land  was  laid  off  in  beds  three 
feet  wide  and  water  turned  into  the  furrows  between 
the  beds.  These  furrows  joined  at  right  angles  an 
irrigating  trench  which  in  turn  drew  its  supply  from 
a  flume  running-  along  one  side  of  the  garden.  Water 
when  irrigation  was  needed  was  drawn  from  an  inch 
hole  bored  in  the  flume  where  the  trench  joined  it.  The 
supply  to  the  furrows  was  controlled  by  a  board  with 
two  half -inch  holes  in  it  at  junction  of  each  furrow 
with  the  trench.  When  irrigating,  the  inch  hole  in  the 
flume  is  unstopped,  the  water  rushes  into  the  trench 
through  the  small  holes  into  the  furrows  betw^een  the 
beds,  soaking  into  them  and  thus  watering  the  plants. 
By  plugging  some  of  the  small  holes  the  flow-  can  be 
limited  or  distributed  as  desired.  Times  of  irrigation 
averaged  about  once  in  ten  days,  occupying  ten  to 
twenty  minutes  each  time.  Whole  labor  of  irrigating 
was  valued  at  forty-eight  cents. 

Watered  from  a  Well. — A  good  well,  a  windmill 
and  some  piping  and  hose  made  a  successful  garden  of 
D.  S.  Carnahan's  quarter  acre  in  Stafford  county,  Kan- 
sas. Value  of  product  w^as  sixty-seven  dollars  and 
sixty-eight  cents ;  cost,  twenty-six  dollars ;  net,  forty- 
one  dollars  and  sixty-eight  cents.  Previous  attempts 
without  irrigation  had  proved  failures. 

To  insure  success  in  this  part  of  Kansas,  writes 
Mr.  Carnahan,  select  ground  w^here  it  can  be  irrigated. 
Then  thoroughly  prepare  the  ground  by  plowing  deep ; 
the  deeper  the  better.  Prepare  the  seedbed  by  making 
it  very  fine,  as  almost  all  garden  seed  are  small  and 
much  depends  on  getting^  them  well  started.  Cultivate 
the  surface  well,  let  no  weeds  grow^     Do  not  let  them 


•A/-Z  kf  OA/ 


GARDEN    IRRIGATION  167 

g-et  high  enough  to  pull  with  the  hand,  but  rake  them 
out  as  soon  as  they  show  their  heads. 

In  watering,  the  best  results  can  be  had  by  wetting 
the  ground  well,  then  letting  it  alone  until  it  needs 
water  again.  Do  not  put  a  little  on  every  day  or  so. 
This  rule  will  apply  to  almost  all  garden  stuff  except 
tomatoes.  A  good  plan  with  tomatoes  is  to  keep  them 
growing  nicely  until  the  fruit  is  well  set,  then  wet  them 
a  great  deal. 

Sold  to  the  Miners. — A  location  not  far  from  the 
gold  mines  of  Cripple  Creek  gave  Philip  H.  Sheridan, 
Colorado,  a  good  market  for  the  surplus  produce  of  his 
half-acre  irrigated  garden.  Sales  amounted  to  seventy- 
two  dollars  and  cost  was  fifty-two.     He  writes : 

The  garden  patch  is  adobe  soil  and  contains  a  little 
alkali.  We  depend  on  irrigation  altogether  to  grow 
our  crops,  but  occasionally  we  have  rains  that  help  the 
crops  some.  Each  time  I  irrigate  the  garden  I  charge 
one-half  hour  against  it.  The  water  is  allowed  to  run 
on  the  garden  nearly  all  day,  so  there  is  very  little  to 
do  except  to  turn  the  water  on  and  turn  it  off  again 
when  it  is  wet  enough.  Wages  here  are  one  dollar 
and  fifty  cents  per  day  for  men  boarding  themselves, 
one  dollar  and  tw^enty-five  cents  for  women  and  three 
dollars  for  team  and  man.  I  have  from  three  to  eight 
boarders  during  the  season,  and  we  consume  nearly 
all  the  ])ro(luct,  but  any  surplus  we  have  brings  a  ready 
sale  at  a  good  price. 

A  Three-acre  Irrigated  Garden  was  managed  with 
considerable  profit  by  J.  H.  Crowley,  Rocky  Ford,  Colo- 
rado. He  used  land  one  year  from  sod,  valued  at  one 
hundred  dollars  per  acre.  Ten  large  loads  of  sheep 
manure  and  six  barrels  of  hen  manure  were  applied. 
The  poultry  manure  was  first  soaked  in  a  pit  and  then 
distributed  by  turning  the  irrigating  ditch  through  the 


l68  PRIZE     GARDENING 

pit.     The  effect  of  the  hquid  manure  began  to  show  in 
thirty-six  hours. 

Water  was  supphecl  the  garden  from  a  branch 
lateral  ditch  running  at  right  angles  to  the  seventy  long 
rows  which  comprised  the  garden.  Through  inch- 
square  openings  the  water  was  conducted  between  the 
rows  along  a  small  furrow  made  for  it  with  a  shovel 
plow  or  with  a  hand  plow  with  furrowing  attachment. 
Irrigation  was  performed  about  once  in  ten  days,  occu- 
pying only  about  fifteen  minutes  morning  or  night. 
Income  from  the  garden  was  two  hundred  and  thirty- 
two  dollars  and  ninety-seven  cents ;  paid  for  seed, 
twelve  dollars  and  eighty-five  cents ;  for  manure,  five 
dollars  ;  labor,  thirty-two  dollars  and  ten  cents  ;  interest 
on  land,  thirty  dollars ;  incidentals,  nine  dollars  and 
seventy-five  cents ;  total  cost,  eighty-nine  dollars  and 
seventy  cents ;  profit,  one  hundred  and  forty-three  dol- 
lars and  twentv-seven  cents. 


CHAPTER  XII 

IRRIGATION      IN      TUB      EAST 

Several  of  the  best  eastern  .i^ardeners  felt  that 
abundance  of  water  was  needed  to  make  their  work  an 
absolute  success.  Asserts  L.  E.  Dimock  of  Connecticut : 
*'  Irrigation  facilities  are  much  to  be  desired.  Capital 
invested  in  windmill,  pumps,  etc.,  for  the  purpose  of 
forcing  water  into  a  position  that  can  be  utilized  would 
be  a  profitable  investment ;  for  in  a  dry  season  the  sup- 
ply of  vegetables  is  short  in  general,  and  it  is  then  that 
good  prices  are  obtained. 

"  The  hill  that  grew  the  largest  pumpkin,  eighty- 
one  pounds,  was  watered  three  times  a  week  through 
a  wooden  spout  inserted  in  the  hill  before  being  filled, 
reaching  the  bottom.  One  pail  of  water  once  in  three 
days  was  poured  into  the  spout ;  in  this  way  the  water 
reached  the  bottom  of  the  hill.  The  moisture  being 
taken  up  by  the  roots  is  the  correct  way  of  irrigation. 
Water  poured  on  the  top  of  the  soil  causes  the  earth  to 
crust  over  and  retard  the  growth  of  plants.  Moisture 
deep  down  causes  the  roots  to  run  deep  and  by  thus 
doing  gathers  nourishment.  Hills  thus  treated  pro- 
duced pumpkins  of  a  size  much  larger  than  where  no 
water  was  used." 

This  chapter  describes  the  several  ambitious  and 
systematic  attempts  made  to  secure  proper  conditions 
of  moisture  regardless  of  the  season.  Although  the 
extra  cost  of  outfit  and  labor  was  considerable,  the 
watered  gardens  were  usually  very  profitable. 

Watering  a  City  Lot. — Worn-out,  weedy,  drouthy 
and  generally  demoralized  land  made  a  good  garden 


170 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


under  good  culture  and  the  skillful  irrigation  methods 
of  J.  B.  Reynolds,  a  successful  contestant  living  in 
Burlington  county,  New  Jersey.  The  location  was 
house  lot  land  on  the  edge  of  the  city,  and  the  soil  had 
been  "  farmed  to  death  "  by  cropping  without  fertiliz- 
ing, until  weeds  were  the  only  crop  that  would  flourish. 
The  g  arden  was  carefully  planned.     The  plot  of  two 


FRUIT  TREES  IN  THE  GARDEN 

thousand  two  hundred  and  forty  square  feet  produced 
vegetables  worth  twenty-nine  dollars  and  fifty-four 
cents  at  a  cost  of  nineteen  dollars  and  ninety-two  cents 
for  labor  and  seven  dollars  and  fifty-eight  cents  for 
other  expenses,  leaving  two  dollars  and  four  cents 
profit.  The  irrigation  is  of  special  interest  as  described 
by  Mr.  Reynolds : 


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172 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


When  I  first  began  gardening  three  years  ago, 
particular  attention  was  paid  to  the  laying  out  of  the 
garden  for  the  purpose  of  irrigation.  The  ground 
originally  sloped  from  a  to  d  and  b  to  c,  d  and  c 
being  about  eighteen  inches  lower  than  a  and  b.  From 
a  to  6  it  was  practically  level,  while  at  the  other  end 
it  sloped  from  d  to  c.  In  laying  out  the  garden  I 
raked  and  moved  the  soil  so  as  to  reverse  the  slope  at 
each  end.  The  result  was  if  water  is  let  in  at  a  and 
directed  south  in  the  west  path,  which  is  depressed 
about  three  inches,  it  will  flow  to  b,  then  to  c,  and  so 


IRRIGATION  ri.AN  OF  J.  B.  REYNOLDS'S  GARDEN 

along  the  east  path  to  d.  If  I  want  to  irrigate  the 
plants  of  any  given  row,  I  put  a  dam  in  the  west  path 
opposite  a  point  between  this  row  and  the  next,  and 
cut  open  the  east  side  of  the  path  opposite  this  row. 
The  water  will  then  run  down  the  patch  to  the  dam, 
and  so  down  the  row  and  out  of  the  garden  at  the  outlet 
as  indicated.  One  advantage  of  this  plan  is  that  I  can 
irrigate  on  a  hot  day  without  scalding.  If  I  want  to 
water  a  row  of  radishes,  for  instance,  I  would  first  take 
the  Firefly  plow,  set  it  down  two  holes,  and  strike  a 


IRRIGATION      IN      THE      EAST  1/3 

furrow  along  the  north  side  of  the  row,  throwing  the 
soil  away  from  the  plants,  then  turn  on  a  gentle  stream 
that  will  just  nicely  soak  around  the  plants.  After  it 
is  well  wet  in,  run  the  plow  the  reverse  way,  throwing 
the  soil  back  against  the  plants.  If  the  soil  becomes 
too  wet,  it  is  thrown  back  as  soon  as  dry  enough.  The 
main  point  is  to  have  a  gentle  stream.  A  fast  one  will 
overflow  the  furrow  and  run  too  fast  and  simply  set 
the  surface.  This  leaves  the  roots  to  grow  near  the 
surface  and  the  plants  show  the  effect  of  a  hot  sun.  A 
slow  stream  soaks  down,  and  I  have  often  saturated 
the  ground  under  the  plant  while  the  surface  is  yet  dry. 

Another  advantage  of  this  system  of  irrigation  is 
the  ease  with  which  it  is  done.  I  can  start  in  the  water 
on  one  side  of  the  garden  and  go  to  work  on  the  other, 
only  stopping  occasionally  to  change  the  water  from 
one  row  to  another.  T  watered  the  row  of  early  cab- 
bage more  than  the  others,  and  had  them  mature  and 
out  of  the  way  in  time  for  a  crop  of  celery,  while  the 
last  heads  in  the  adjoining  rows  were  not  matured  until 
a  month  after  the  celery  was  set  out.  The  greatest 
advantage  of  irrigation  is  that  you  can  get  the  water 
when  it  is  needed,  and  do  not  have  to  wait  for  rain. 
Moles  caused  a  great  deal  of  annoyance,  for  many  times 
I  have  found  the  water  running  down  a  mole  hill 
instead  of  following  along  a  row  of  plants.  By  using 
a  blunt  stick  about  one  and  one-half  inches  in  diameter 
to  punch  down  the  earth  the  hole  will  soon  be 
blocked  up. 

"  Water,  Soluble  Fertilisers  and  Irrigation  make 
a  team  that  will  work  in  dry  weather,"  concludes  F.  W. 
Kilbourne,  New  Brunswick,  New  Jersey,  thirteenth 
regular  prize  winner,  whose  garden  of  one  and  three- 
fourths  acres  paid  him  seven  hundred  and  fifteen  dol- 
lars and  fifty-three  cents  at  a  cost  of  eighty  dollars  and 


174  PRIZE     GARDENING 

sixty-three  cents,  the  expense  account  not  including 
cost  of  labor. 

At  a  cost  of  ten  dollars  and  fifty  cents  for  three 
hundred  feet  of  piping,  the  garden  was  connected  with 
the  city  water  main,  and  the  water  was  distributed  by 
hose.  Water  cost  about  one  cent  per  barrel.  "  Beets, 
cauliflower  and  lettuce  showed  most  quickly  the  effects 
of  watering ;  the  onions  least  of  all,  although  the  water- 
ing saved  them.  The  farmers  around  had  their  onion 
crops  all  burned  up  by  the  drouth."  Upon  six  rows  of 
Parker  Earle  strawberries,  the  effect  of  watering  in 
furrows  opened  between  the  rows  with  a  hoe  was  to 
immediately  increase  the  size  of  the  berries.  Berries 
not  irrigated  were  a  failure. 

By  "  soluble  fertilizers  "  Mr.  Kilbourne  refers  to 
chemicals,  mostly  nitrate  of  soda,  bone  black  and 
muriate  of  potash.  These  are  not  mixed,  but  are 
applied  separately  and  worked  into  the  soil.  The  potash 
is  applied  in  winter  or  early  spring,  better  results  being 
obtained  than  from  summer  application.  Bone  black 
proved  very  good  for  radishes,  and  nitrate  of  soda  for 
spinach.  For  most  crops  the  three  substances  were 
applied  in  something  like  equal  quantities.  The  land 
had  been  used  for  truck  growing  for  the  past  twenty 
years  and  had  been  fertilized  wholly  with  chemicals 
for  three  years  past,  yet  the  crops  had  constantly 
increased. 

It  was  found  that  bordeaux  mixture  would  drive 
potato  bugs  from  egg  plants,  while  wrapping  in  paper 
saved  the  egg  fruit  from  a  freeze.  Lima  beans  were 
started  in  deep  boxes  in  a  greenhouse  May  lo,  and 
picking  began  July  12.  Onions  too  small  to  sell  were 
used  for  pickling  or  saved  for  sets.  Cauliflower  with 
high  fertilizing  and  irrigation  proved  very  profitable, 
bringing  eight  to  fifteen  cents  per  head.  It  was  a 
second  crop.     The  twenty-one  rows  cost  fourteen  del- 


IRRIGATION   IN    THE   EAST  I75 

lars  and  fifty  cents  for  chemicals,  seventeen  dollars  for 
labor  and  fifteen  dollars  for  commission  on  sales.  There 
were  sold  one  thousand  four  hundred  and  seventy  head 
for  one  hundred  and  fifty-eight  dollars  and  sixty  cents. 
Profit  on  caulifiower,  one  hundred  dollars  and  seventy- 
four  cents,  or  nearly  five  dollars  per  row.  Quoting 
from  Mr.  Kilbourne's  journal: 

June  24,  plowed,  harrowed  and  rolled  strawberry 
ground  for  cabbage.  On  the  26th,  marked  out  rmd 
let  the  water  down  the  furrows.  After  the  furrows 
were  filled,  spread  broadcast  fifty  pounds  muriate  of 
potash,  one  hundred  pounds  bone  black  and  one  hun- 
dred pounds  nitrate,  most  of  the  fertilizer  falling  in 
the  furrows.  We  then  harrowed  lightly  to  mix  the 
fertilizer  and  partly  fill  the  furrows,  then  set  the  plants 
in  the  depression  left,  just  covering  enough  to  make 
them  stand  up.  The  plants  were  set  three  by  two  feet, 
then  cultivated.  It  was  the  best  cabbage  I  ever  grew ; 
not  a  single  head  missing  and  many  of  them  were  too 
large  to  go  in  a  sixteen-quart  basket.  The  six  rows, 
one  hundred  and  twenty  in  each  row,  were  sold  for 
three  dollars  a  hundred.  The  rest  of  the  plants  I  set 
on  ground  outside  the  garden  that  was  heavily  ma- 
nured. They  did  well,  but  were  not  as  good  as  those 
in  the  garden.  I  cut  all  the  cabbage  on  this  piece  by 
the  first  of  October  and  immediately  plowed  and  har- 
rowed in  one  hundred  pounds  of  nitrate  and  sowed 
round-leaf  spinach,  which  was  by  November  20  of  a 
good  size  to  winter  over. 

The  celery  plants  in  the  seedbed  were  large 
enough  by  the  last  week  in  June  to  prick  out,  and  we  set 
them  on  a  piece  of  ground  where  they  were  to  be 
planted  finally.  After  plowing  a  strip  ten  feet  wide 
and  two  hundred  and  forty  feet  long  we  spread  one 
hundred  pounds  of  nitrate  and  one  hundred  pounds 
bone  black.     We  harrowed  thoroughly.     Then  with  a 


176  PRIZE     GARDENING 

boy  to  bring  the  plants,  my  man  and  I  set  them  in  rows 
the  short  way  of  the  piece,  two  inches  apart,  and  the 
rows  were  one  foot  apart,  so  they  could  be  worked. 
The  boy  brought  plants  faster  than  we  could  set  them 
out,  so  he  had  time  to  water  the  plants  as  soon  as  they 
were  set.  The  piece  held  fourteen  thousand  plants, 
which  we  were  two  days  setting  out.  They  should  be 
set  with  care;  if  the  root  is  doubled  in  planting,  the 
plants  never  amount  to  anything. 

The  ground  was  in  fine  condition  July  20,  and  we 
set  eighteen  rows  in  one  day,  four  hundred  to  the  row, 
setting  in  shallow  furrows.  Each  plant  had  a  big 
bunch  of  roots  holding  a  ball  of  dirt.  We  watered  the 
bed  thoroughly  before  liftmg  the  plants.  When  the 
plants  were  set  we  cultivated  close  to  them,  filling  the 
furrows.  We  had  fine  weather  for  celery ;  not  too  hot. 
and  lots  of  rain,  and  they  grew  finely.  When  the  plants 
were  fairly  started,  I  spread  four  hundred  pounds  bone 
black,  three  hundred  pounds  nitrate  of  soda  and  one 
hundred  and  fifty  pounds  muriate  of  potash,  cultivating 
in.  Cultivated  once  a  week  until  September  21.  On 
September  5,  spread  one  hundred  pounds  nitrate  of 
soda  between  the  rows.  Commenced  banking  every 
other  row  October  2. 

Another  Jersey  Water  Garden  (Alfred  P.  Edge). 
— The  garden  is  situated  about  fifty  feet  from  our 
kitchen  door,  and  to  a  busy  farmer  this  is  very  impor- 
tant. The  busiest  man  has  many  an  odd  moment, 
waiting  for  meals,  etc.,  when  he  can  easily  pick  up  a 
hoe  and  not  having  far  to  go  can  do  much  work  and 
not  miss  the  time.  I  have  a  windmill  at  the  kitchen 
door  to  supply  the  house  and  barns ;  this  I  also  use  to 
flood  my  garden  in  dry  times.  We  almost  always  have 
a  drouth  sometime  during  summer.  The  soil  is  natu- 
rally a  heavy  clay,  but  by  careful  handling  its  nature 
has  been  changed.     My    fence    when    I    came  was  a 


IRRIGATION    IX    THE    EAST 


77 


dilapidated  paling-  with  a  one-foot  board  at  the  bottom ; 
I  knocked  off  the  pahngs,  but  left  the  bottom  board. 
I  then  tacked  on  woven  chicken  wire  three  feet  high, 
and  thus  have  a  good  fence  four  feet  high  and  one  that 
never  gets  out  of  order.  If  a  chicken  gets  over,  as  they 
do  sometimes  in  the  spring,  I  at  once  shoot  the  chicken 


INSIDE  PLANT  FOR  GARDEN   IRRIGATION 


and  the  trouble  ends,  as  the  others  seem  to  take  the  hint. 
The  garden  is  all  covered  at  present  with  a  rank  growth 
of  crimson  clover.  This  I  planted  last  fall  at  various 
times  as  I  worked  each  crop  the  last  time.  This  I  have 
done  for  several  years.  In  the  spring  I  mow  the  ground 


178  PRIZE     GARDENING 

at  least  twice  before  it  is  plowed,  and  feed  it  to  my 
cows  and  thus  get  a  flavor  of  grass  in  our  butter  long 
before  pasture  is  ready.  Plowing  the  green  crop  under 
has  a  wonderful  effect  upon  a  clay  soil,  as  it  lightens 
it  up.  The  soil  where  the  clover  is  growing  can  be 
worked  much  earlier  than  where  the  ground  has 
been  bare. 

Owing  to  the  fact  that  my  garden  has  a  slight  fall 
from  the  upper  end,  it  is  very  easy  for  me  to  irrigate 
any  part  of  it.  Some  time  ago  I  purchased  a  lot  of 
second-hand  inch  pipe  and  valves  for  two  dollars,  giv- 
ing me  enough  pipe  for  my  garden  twice  over.  The 
pipe  I  laid  from  my  windmill  fifty  feet  away,  on  the 
surface  of  the  ground.  The  pipe  has  five  branches ; 
each  branch  has  a  valve  cut-off,  and  there  is  also  a  cut- 
off in  the  main  pipe  between  each  branch.  I  have  a 
barrel  at  the  end  of  the  pipe  into  which  the  pipe  dis- 
charges. This  barrel  I  always  keep  full,  and  from  it 
I  fill  my  water  pots  for  special  sprinkling. 

When  there  comes  a  dry  time  I  start  the  wind- 
mill, open  the  branch  I  wish  to  use,  make  a  small  chan- 
nel with  my  hoe  down  the  whole  length  between  the 
two  rows  I  wish  to  water.  The  water  then  runs  by 
natural  fall  gradi  ally  to  the  bottom  of  the  garden,  and 
I  can  go  away  and  leave  it  several  hours  at  a  time.  Of 
course  the  fall  is  very  gradual  or  it  would  not  work ; 
very  much  fall  would  wash.  The  windmill  T  have  for 
my  supply  of  water  for  the  house  and  barns.  It  pumps 
from  a  well  at  the  house  into  a  box  at  the  kitchen  porch 
The  box  has  two  outlets,  one  running  to  the  barn  and 
the  other  to  the  garden ;  when  the  water  is  running  to 
the  barn  T  stop  up  the  other  pipe.  When  things  are 
well  soaked  I  usually  stop  the  flow  and  with  my  hoe 
I  draw  some  dry  earth  back  and  fill  up  the  gutter; 
otherwise  I  find  the  ground  bakes  when  the  water  has 
been  running,  on  exposure  to  the  sun. 


IRRIGATION     IN    THE    EAST 


179 


The  only  way  I  think  I  could  improve  on  this  plan 
would  be  to  sink  ordinary  drain  tile  a  few  inches  below 
the  surface  and  run  water  through  these.  They  would 
leak  at  the  joints,  then  there  would  be  no  trouble  with 
the  ground  baking.  This  I  intend  to  try  next  year  in 
my  celery  bed.     With  us  if  we  do  not  have  some  easy 


CELERY,  DENIM  HOSE  BETWEEN  ROWS 


v/ay  of  using  water  our  gardens  simply  dry  up,  as 
we  always  have  a  drouth  during  the  summer.  This 
evening,  ]\Tay  7,  I  started  the  windmill,  and  with  ten 
minutes*  work  with  a  hoe  had  the  water  running  the 
whole  length  of  my  double  row  of  peas,  and  down 
through  the  strawberries  below.  It  would  be  an  im- 
provement if  I  had  a  bank  in  the  garden  so  that  I  could 


l8o  PRIZE     GARDENING 

have  an  even  flow ;  when  the  wind  is  Hght  the  windmill 
does  not  pump  fast  enough. 

I  ran  the  water  down  the  whole  length  of  my  peas 
May  29  to  freshen  them  up,  also  down  row  of  straw- 
berries. I  simply  draw  a  hoe  down  where  I  want  the 
water  to  run,  taking  only  a  few  minutes.  I  start  the 
windmill  and  go  away  and  leave  it  an  hour  or  so.  This 
soaks  the  ground  for  more  than  a  foot  on  each  side  of 
the  trench,  afterward  cover  the  trench  to  stop  baking. 
I  do  not  often  water  the  whole  garden  in  this  way; 
only  such  things  as  really  suffer  in  bearing,  as  peas, 
strawberries,  egg  plant,  etc.  Tomatoes  I  rarely  water ; 
one  year  I  overdid  with  my  tomatoes  and  they  went 
too  much  to  vine.  Water  in  the  garden  must  be  used 
with  judgment.  Because  once  in  a  while  it  is  good, 
it  does  not  follow  that  all  the  time  is  better. 

^For  watering  my  celery  when  the  plants  are  small, 
before  they  begin  to  spread,  I  have  a  different  plan. 
Two  years  ago  I  purchased  several  yards  of  denim 
and  cut  it  into  strips  and  stitched  it  into  a  hose  about 
one  and  one-half  inches  in  diameter,  and  closed  at  the 
lower  end.  I  lay  the  hose  along  the  bed  between  two 
rows  of  celery,  having  fastened  one  end  to  my  water 
pipe.  I  start  the  water  and  go  away ;  the  pipe  fills  up 
the  hose  and  the  water  creeps  out  in  small  drops  all 
along  the  denim  hose.  The  advantage  of  this  is  that 
the  water  comes  out  quietly  and  gradually,  and  the 
ground  does  not  bake  after  it.  It  also  moistens  the 
ground  slowly  and  evenly  all  along  the  bed  at  once. 
I  tried  muslin  hose,  but  that  is  too  porous  and  let  the 
water  out  too  fast.  Denim  is  just  right.  If  hose  is 
open  at  the  lower  end  it  will  carry  water  wherever 
wanted.  It  only  leaks  when  under  pressure.  This 
hose  I  do  not  use  after  plants  have  begun  to  spread,  as 
it  cannot  be  got  between  the  rows.     The  hose  lasts 


IRRIGATION     IN    THE    EAST 


l8l 


several  years  and  the  material  only  costs  eight  cents 
a  yard.  I  have  used  mine  two  years,  and  it  is  good  yet. 
I  boarded  in  my  two  oldest  rows  of  celery  Septem- 
ber 7.  I  have  a  lot  of  old  fence  boards  taken  from  a 
worn-out  fence ;  they  are  five  feet  long  by  one  and  one- 
half  feet  wide.  These  I  put  up  close  to  the  outside  row, 
holding  them  in  place  by  stakes.     I  then  put  boards 


IRRIGATING  CELERY 


in  between  the  second  and  third  rows,  enclosing  two 
rows ;  between  these  two  rows  I  have  a  small  channel 
for  water.  The  boards  enclosing  the  two  rows  are  one 
foot  apart  at  the  bottom  and  slope  nearer  together  at 
the  top.  The  celery  leaves  now  reach  a  little  above  the 
top  of  the  boards.  This  is  only  for  the  two  rows  1 
wish  to  bleach  for  immediate  use ;  the  balance  I  simply 


l82  PRIZE     GARDENING 

enclose  by  a  row  of  boards  on  all  four  sides.  This 
does  away  with  all  hard  work  of  hilling  up  and  enables 
one  to  raise  much  more  on  the  same  ground,  and  of 
course  one  can  afford  to  fertilize  heavily.  This  plan 
may  have  some  drawbacks,  but  if  it  has  I  have  not 
found  them  out.  I  also  cover  the  tops  of  the  two  rows 
with  pieces  of  old  carpet  to  more  effectually  shut  off 
the  light.  This  weather  celery  requires  air,  so  I  gen- 
erally throw  off  the  carpet  in  the  evening  and  replace 
it  in  the  morning. 

Trees  in  the  garden  are  a  delusion  and  a  snare. 
They  are  always  in  the  way  and  take  up  more  room 
than  they  are  worth.  If  anyone  should  ask  for  advice 
I  should  say  never  plant  a  tree  in  your  garden.  There 
is  only  one  thing  T  know  of  worse  than  a  tree  in  a 
garden — and  that  is  two  trees. 

Everyone  should  have  Japan  wine  berries ;  they 
come  after  raspberries  and  are  very  fine  for  anyone 
who  likes  an  acid  berry.  They  are  also  excellent  for 
jellies. 

I  have  raised  two  crops  on  nearly  all  my  garden. 
On  part  of  the  ground  I  have  planted  the  third  crop. 
Where  the  celery  bed  was  I  first  had  early  peas,  fol- 
lowed by  celery,  which  gave  place  to  my  trial  straw- 
berry bed. 

To  shade  the  plants  as  I  transplant  them  until 
they  get  used  to  their  new  surroundings,  I  use  four 
strips  of  muslin  twelve  feet  long  and  nine  inches  wide, 
these  I  tack  to  small  stakes,  a  stake  at  about  every  four- 
feet.  I  stick  them  up  along  the  row  of  plants  set  out 
and  this  shades  them  from  the  sun.  The  advantage  of 
such  an  arrangement  is  that  they  are  easily  handled, 
and  when  not  in  use  roll  up  into  very  small  space  and 
are  always  ready.  Each  day  I  set  out  just  as  many 
plants  as  I  can  protect. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

EXPERIMENTAL    GARDENING 

Novel  features  were  encouraged  by  quite  a  large 
percentage  of  the  contestants.  In  some  cases  the  new 
departure  hightened  the  value  of  the  account,  while  in 
other  cases  the  un familiarity  of  the  gardener  with  new 
circumstances  greatly  hampered  his  efforts.  Some 
tried  new  crops  or  new  varieties,  others  chose  unusual 
locations,  while  still  others  tested  untried  methods  and 
conditions.  Many  of  these  are  necessarily  included  in 
other  chapters. 

Reclaiiuuig  a  Waste. — The  solid  satisfaction  of 
changing  a  half  barren,  stony,  untilled  tract  of  one- 
fourth  acre  into  a  good  garden  and  incidentally  win- 
ning the  third  Rawson  special  prize,  belongs  to  C.  P. 
Byington,  Cairo,  New  York,  whose  little  farm  is 
located  at  the  base  of  the  Catskills,  ten  miles  from  the 
Hudson  river.  The  description  is  from  Mr.  Bying- 
ton's  account : 

Operations  in  the  garden  began  when  the  owner 
moved  on  the  place  in  the  spring  of  1897,  and  con- 
sisted mainly  in  the  removal  of  dead  cherry  trees, 
currant  bushes  and  stones ;  and  incidentally,  the  re- 
moval of  stones  has  formed  the  bulk  of  my  operations 
ever  since.  As  an  evidence  of  what  has  been  accom- 
plished along  this  line,  there  is  a  solid  roadbed  for  a 
distance  of  three  hundred  feet  in  the  highway  fronting 
the  property,  composed  wholly  of  the  stones  removed 
from  the  garden;  these  stones,  covered  with  coarse 
gravel,  forming  one  of  the  best  bits  of  road  in  the 
town.     During  the  two  years  since  April,   1897,  the 


184  PRIZE     GARDENING 

garden  had  received  just  what  fertihzer  was  produced 
on  the  premises,  viz.,  the  product  of  one  cow,  one 
hundred  hens  and  twenty  ducks,  and  has  yielded 
seventy  bushels  of  mangels,  carrots  and  turnips  and 
three  hundred  heads  of  cabbage,  besides  all  the  peas, 
beans,  sweet  corn  and  other  vegetables  except  potatoes 
used  in  a  family  of  five. 

The  soil  is  a  shallow,  sandy  loam,  containing  a 
large  admixture  of  small,  shaly  stones,  and  resting  on 
a  substratum  of  shale  rock ;  a  light,  porous,  quick- 
growing  soil,  at  its  best  in  a  wet  season,  but  lacking 
those  qualities  and  conditions  favoring  the  conserva- 
tion of  moisture.  Another  extract  shows  the  thorough- 
ness with  which  this  rather  unpromising  tract  was 
worked  for  results : 

The  entire  plot  was  cultivated  practically  every 
other  day  except  Sunday  with  double  wheel  hoes,  set- 
ting the  hoes  quite  close  together  and  going  astride 
the  rows,  cultivating  both  sides  at  the  same  time.  The 
hoes  not  only  cut  every  weed  below  the  surface,  but 
also  break  up  the  moisture  capillarity,  maintaining  a 
fine  loose  mulch  about  an  inch  deep  over  the  entire 
surface  of  the  plot.  Cultivation  in  this  manner  was 
begun  as  soon  as  the  plants  became  visible,  and  con- 
tinued regularly  throughout  the  season,  or  until  the 
cultivator  could  no  longer  go  through  the  rows  without 
injury  to  the  plants.  When  the  foliage  of  plants 
became  so  large  as  to  interfere  with  cultivation,  the 
leaf  guards  were  added,  thus  raising  the  foliage  out  of 
the  way  of  injury,  and  enabling  cultivation  to  be  con- 
tinued much  longer  than  otherwise  could  be  done. 

Taking  into  consideration  the  unprecedented 
drouth  and  the  shallow,  porous  nature  of  the  soil  in  my 
garden,  I  have  every  reason  to  be  satisfied  with  the 
results  obtained.  That  my  garden  was  a  success  is 
attested  by  the  fact  that  I  exhibited  eighteen  varieties 


EXrERIMENTAL    GARDENING  185 

of  vegetables  (all  of  them  available  for  table  use  when 
exhibited)  at  the  county  fair  held  August  22,  23  and 
24,  winning  the  first  prize  awarded  for  the  best  exhi- 
bition of  vegetables. 

The  results  obtained  have  confirmed  my  judgment 
in  making  conservation  of  moisture  the  principal  con- 
sideration throughout  all  my  garden  operations  from 
the  very  beginning,  and  unquestionably,  to  my  mind, 
the  one  factor  which  contributed  more  to  that  end  than 
all  else  was  the  regular  daily  cultivation  of  one-half 
the  garden,  going  completely  over  the  entire  garden 
every  other  day.  This  I  would  in  no  wise  have  been 
able  to  accomplish  without  my  hand  cultivators,  one 
and  a  half  to  two  hours  each  day  sufficing  for  a  boy 
to  do  what,  by  ordinary  methods,  would  require  a  man 
nearly  all  the  time  to  do  less  satisfactorily.  By  this 
means  a  fine  loose  mulch  was  maintained  over  the 
entire  garden,  in  which  the  moisture  capillarity  was 
constantly  broken  up,  and  the  moisture  in  the  soil  pre- 
vented from  reaching  the  surface  to  be  dissipated  by 
the  sun  and  air. 

Total  value  of  products,  fifty-one  dollars  and 
ninety-six  cents ;  fertilizer,  twelve  dollars  and  twenty- 
five  cents  ;  seed,  five  dollars  and  eighty-five  cents  ;  plow- 
ing and  planting,  three  dollars  and  fifty  cents ;  cultiva- 
tion by  man  at  one  dollar  per  day,  seven  dollars  and 
sixty-one  cents ;  work  by  boy  at  fifty  cents  per  day, 
four  dollars  and  sixty  cents ;  interest  on  garden  and 
tools,  twelve  dollars  and  sixty-six  cents ;  net  profit, 
five  dollars  and  forty-nine  cents. 

A  Melon  Garden. — An  interesting  story  was  con- 
tributed by  W.  D,  Hinds,  Worcester  county,  Massa- 
chusetts, w^ho  is  one  of  the  best  known  peach  growers 
in  New  England.  He  selected  a  half-acre  patch  which 
two  years  before  was  rough,  rocky  pasture,  cleared  off 
part  of  the  rocks  and  set  it  to  peaches.     As  a  garden 


l86  PRIZE     GARDENING 

crop  he  chose  muskmelons,  as  they  would  not  injure 
the  trees.  A  row  of  melons  was  carried  between  every 
two  rows  of  peaches,  also  a  hill  between  the  trees  in 
the  rows.  Spring  tooth  harrows  and  cultivators  were 
found  best  for  working  such  rocky  land.  Five  loads 
of  manure  were  used  and  one  hundred  pounds  fertilizer. 
The  plants  were  started  in  a  cold  frame  from  seed 
planted  April  2^.  ''  Another  year,"  writes  Mr.  Hinds, 
''  I  should  start  my  seeds  two  weeks  earlier,  say  April 
12,  SO  as  to  get  the  melons  all  ripened  by  the  middle  of 
September.  When  the  first  cold  days  come,  people 
stop  buying,  and  there  is  no  fun  or  profit  in  peddling 
fruit  when  people  don't  want  it.  I  should  also  use 
more  chemical  fertilizer  another  time." 

Cutworms  were  poisoned  with  a  little  paris  green 
and  molasses  mixed  with  eight  quarts  bran.  The  crop 
was  peddled  out,  but  was  accounted  at  wholesale  prices, 
and  the  total  was  one  hundred  and  forty  dollars  and 
eighty-four  cents.  Charge  was  made  for  care  of  trees 
and  credit  allowed  for  their  improvement  The  net 
profit  was  thirty-seven  dollars  and  four  cents. 

Testing  the  Soil. — A  large  handful  of  soil  was 
taken  from  each  of  three  places  in  the  garden  of  E.  R. 
Flagg  of  Massachusetts,  and  a  test  for  acidity  made 
with  blue  litmus  paper.  For  this  purpose  a  tiny  book- 
let containing  twenty-four  slips  of  blue  litmus  paper, 
each  about  two  and  one-half  inches  long  and  one-half 
inch  wide,  was  procured  from  a  wholesale  druggist  for 
five  cents.  A  little  of  the  earth  was  placed  in  a  cup 
and  made  into  a  thick  paste  by  the  addition  of  water. 
Then  one  end  of  a  strip  of  litmus  paper  was  pushed 
into  the  mud  in  the  cup  with  the  handle  of  a  spoon, 
care  being  taken  not  to  touch  the  paper  with  the  moist 
fingers  lest  the  color  be  changed  thereby.  The  paper 
was  allowed  to  remain  in  the  mud  for  three  minutes, 
when  it  was  removed,  the  adhering  mud  rinsed  off  with 


EXPERIMENTAL    GARDENING 


187 


a  very  little  water  and  the  paper  was  pinned  to  the 
window  to  dry.  The  result  showed  the  blue  color  of 
the  litmus  paper  changed  to  a  slate  color  with  a  reddish 
tinge,  indicating  a  very  moderate  degree  of  acidity. 
Another  sample  of  the  soil  was  placed  in  a  cup  with 
sufficient  ammonia  to  thoroughly  wet  and  slightly  cover 
it,  and  allowed  to  stand  for  twenty-four  hours,  when 
the  liquid  was  found  to  be  about  as  black  as  ink,  indi- 
cating the  presence  of  some  organic  acids. 


READY  FOR  BUSINESS 

Several  Novel  Features  are  included  in  the  story 
of  G.  W.  Everson,  Montgomery  county.  New  York,  a 
Rawson  prize  winner.  He  gives  the  receipts  of  his 
one-thirteenth-acre  garden  by  months :  May,  twenty- 
five  cents ;  June,  three  dollars  and  thirty-three  cents ; 
July,  five  dollars  and  ninety-three  cents ;  August,  four 
dollars  and  fifty-four  cents;  September  ninety-seven 
cents;    October,    four    dollars    and    fifty-two    cents; 


l88  PRIZE     GARDENING 

November,  two  dollars  and  eighteen  cents ;  total, 
twenty-one  dollars  and  seventy-two  cents.  The  labor 
for  the  seven  months  beginning  with  April  was,  respec- 
tively, four  hours,  five  and  one-quarter  hours,  nineteen 
hours,  ten  and  one-sixth  hours,  two  hours,  five  and 
three-fourths  hours,  three  and  one-fourth  hours ;  total, 
sixty-eight  hours,  worth  at  fifteen  cents,  ten  dollars 
and  twenty  cents.  The  owner  thinks  labor  was  much 
less  because  hand  wheel  implements  were  used.  Poul- 
try got  into  the  garden  and  the  damage  was  placed  at 
one  dollar,  mostly  to  turnips  and  cabbages.  Lettuce 
was  grown  between  the  rows  of  onions  with  some 
saving  of  space.  Mr.  Everson  mentions  a  wet  spot  in 
his  garden  where  the  soil  was  lumpy  and  did  not  work 
up  well.  The  cause  was  a  snowbank  which  did  not 
melt  till  late.  If  the  snowbank  had  been  scattered  he 
thinks  the  trouble  might  have  been  prevented.  "  To 
work  a  garden  early  in  the  spring,"  continues  Mr. 
Everson,  "  the  garden  should  be  plowed  in  ridges  in 
the  fall."  The  wheel  rake  proved  a  labor-saver  in  clear- 
ing ofif  small  stones.  The  wheel  hoe  with  cultivator 
teeth  was  just  the  thing  for  hoeing  peas.  Sulphur 
proved  a  remedy  for  black  cabbage  fleas. 

An  Interesting  Experiment  with  old,  rough  pas- 
ture land  was  tried  by  E.  H.  Boutelle  of  Worcester 
county,  Massachusetts.  The  object  was  to  make  the 
crops  pay  for  themselves  and  to  take  the  profit  in  im- 
provement of  the  land.  The  first  item  of  expense  was 
clearing  off  the  bush  growth  at  a  cost  of  over  nine 
dollars.  The  vegetables  were  sold  on  a  milk  route. 
Hen  manure  was  bought  at  fifty  cents  per  bushel  and 
barnyard  manure  at  four  dollars  per  cord.  The  best 
paying  crops  proved  to  be  squashes,  string  beans  and 
tomatoes.  The  net  gain  was  nineteen  dollars  and  sixty- 
seven  cents,  also  improvement  of  land,  reckoned  at 
thirty-eight  dollars  for  the  one  and  one-twentieth  acres. 


EXPERIMENTAL    GARDENING  189 

A  Beginner's  Success. — Having  left  a  city  home 
and  a  mercantile  business  to  take  up  an  abandoned 
farm  in  Worcester  county,  Massachusetts,  neither  his 
inexperience  nor  unpreparedness  dampened  the  zeal  of 
F.  R.  Trask.  His  success  shows  that  his  confidence  and 
courage  were  not  unrewarded,  the  garden  showing  a 
net  profit  of  forty-four  dollars  and  fifty-eight  cents 
from  one  and  one-fourth  acres_,  and  his  account  secur- 
ing the  seventh  Rawson  prize.  Air.  Trask  is  evidently 
one  of  those  men  who  bring  from  city  to  country  an 
amount  of  vim  and  enterprise  largely  to  offset  their 
want  of  practice,  and  which  enables  them  quickly  to  fit 
into  the  new  conditions.  His  summary  of  lessons  from 
his  garden  shows  that  he  is  taking  time  to  think  as  well 
as  to  work : 

Have  ground  planted  and  manured  if  possible  in 
fall  before.  Use  fertilizer  freely.  Plant  rows  apart  so 
as  to  use  horse  cultivator,  and  use  it  freely.  Use  a 
horse  weedcr,  and  keep  using  it.  It  kills  weeds.  It 
irrigates.  Plant  the  largest  variety  possible  in  sufficient 
quantities  for  home  use,  and  if  intending  to  market, 
plant  such  crops  as  are  sure  in  large  quantities.  Plant 
some  of  everything  as  early  as  possible,  and  then  plant 
at  frequent  intervals  as  late  as  profitable.  I  was 
frightened  by  some  cautious  friend  crying,  ''Frost; 
wait !  "  Had  I  done  as  I  wished  and  no  frost  came 
(as  it  does  not  at  least  half  of  the  time)  I  would  have 
been  rewarded  with  early  vegetables.  On  the  other 
hand,  had  frost  come,  would  not  have  lost  much^  for 
the  second  or  third  planting  would  have  been  safe. 

Sell  all  surplus  products.  If  the  family  cannot  use 
them,  do  not  let  them  waste,  when  many  families  in  a 
neighboring  village  or  city  will  gladly  take  all  and  pay 
retail  price.  To  such  customers  smaller  quantities  of 
more  varieties  may  be  sold  than  to  the  wholesale  trade. 


190 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


A  year  ago  "how  to  dispose  of  produce"  was  a  serious 
problem,  but  the  year's  experience  has  solved  it  for  me, 
although  a  stranger  in  a  strange  land.  It  is  no  longer  a 
question  of  market,  but  how  to  produce  and  carry  it 
to  market. 

Finally,  read.  Read  agricultural  papers,  and  read 
experiment  station  bulletins.  Then  think  of  what  you 
read  and  what  experience  has  taught,  and  after  think- 
ing, be  prompt  to  act  along  the  lines  of  an  educated 
intelligence. 


A  WOMAN'S  LUXURIANT  GARDEN 


Sold  Produce  to  Indians. — A  two-acre  garden  at 
Hominy,  Oklahoma,  under  the  skillful  management  of 
Mrs.  Lizzie  Snyder,  yielded  about  two  hundred  and 
seven  dollars,  at  a  round  profit  of  one  hundred  and 
fifty  dollars.  Soil  was  sandy  loam,  second  year  from 
the  virgin  sod,  and  part  of  a  tract  rented  from  the 
Indians  at  one  dollar  and  a  half  per  acre.  Expenses 
were  low  on  account  of  cheapness  of  manure  and  labor, 
twenty-five  loads  manure  costing  only  three  dollars, 
and    all    labor    by    man,    woman    and    team    about 


EXPERIMENTAL      GARDENING  IQI 

twenty-eight  dollars.  Customers  were  mostly  the 
neighboring  Osage  Indians,  who  seem  to  have  paid 
prices  fully  equal  to  the  average  in  other  sections.  The 
account  received  one  of  the  regular  prizes. 

Saz'cd  Her  Ozcn  Seeds. — Seeds  for  her  garden 
cost  JMrs.  Alice  C.  Strader,  Columbia  county,  Wiscon- 
sin, only  ten  cents,  since  she  has  for  years  made  a 
practice  of  saving  many  kinds  of  vegetable  and  flower 
seeds  from  specimens  of  her  own  growing.  Free 
seeds  from  the  United  States  department  of  agricul- 
ture also  helped  out  at  planting  time.  The  seed  item 
in  this  garden  shows  a  balance  on  the  credit  side,  since 
the  value  of  those  saved  far  exceeds  those  planted. 


MRS.  ALICE  C.  STRADER 


The  one-third  acre  yielded  thirty-three  dollars  and 
twenty  cents,  of  which  the  largest  item  was  seven  dol- 
lars for  fourteen  bushels  of  tomatoes.  Labor  cost 
eight  dollars  and  twenty-five  cents,  and  manure  one 
dollar  and  sixty-five  cents  at  twenty-five  cents  per  load. 
Net  profit,  twenty-two  dollars  and  eighty  cents. 

High  Feeding  for  Plants. — Interesting  experi- 
ments have  been  carried  on  in  plant  feeding  by  G.  M. 
Sherman  of  Ham.pden  county.  Massachusetts.  His 
plan  in  brief  is  to  supply  liquid  fertilizers  by  means 
of  a  porous  jar  buried  a  foot  or  more  beneath  the 
surface  and  filled  from  time  to  time  through  a  tube 
projecting  above  the  ground. 


192  PRIZE     GARDENING 

The  roots  of  the  plant  or  tree  collect  around  the 
porous  jar  and  absorb  the  fertiHzers.  Patent  has  been 
applied  for.  Mr.  Sherman's  experiments  have  been 
mostly  confined  to  rose  bushes,  which  in  many  cases 
appear  to  have  made  enormous  growth,  shoots  extend- 
ing several  inches  per  day  in  some  cases.  The  inventor 
expects  the  principle  to  prove  of  great  value  in  cultiva- 
tion of  all  kinds  of  fruit  and  shrubs  and  will  attempt 
to  have  the  theory  thoroughly  tested  at  the  state 
experiment  station. 

A  Born  Horticulturist  is  Una  E.  Knight,  Niagara 
county,  New  York.  Her  story  is  told  in  great  detail, 
and  evidently  with  keen  delight  in  working  amid  the 
beauties  of  nature  and  among  the  plants  and  flowers 
of  her  garden.  A  great  deal  of  work  was  put  into 
this  garden  with  no  direct  return ;  much  attention 
having  been  given  to  various  experiments  which 
proved  more  or  less  indecisive  because  of  the  drouth, 
and  from  neglect  caused  by  illness  of  several  members 
of  the  family.  Expenses  for  the  one-tenth  acre  were 
nineteen  dollars  and  three  cents,  of  which  two-thirds 
was  for  labor  charged  at  low  rates.  Receipts  w^ere 
twenty-two  dollars  and  eighty-six  cents.  A  novel 
celery  bed  is  described : 

''Near  the  lower  wall  was  built  up  a  heap  of 
manure  a  foot  or  more  deep  on  which  was  placed 
four  or  five  inches  of  fine  earth,  and  all  was  enclosed 
in  a  box-like  structure  five  feet  high  on  three  sides, 
and  less  on  the  north  side,  so  I  could  get  in.  Here  I 
transplanted  my  celery  plants  four  inches  apart.  I 
watered  them  copiously  from  the  well  every  day,  or 
as  often  as  I  thought  was  needful.  My  plants  grew 
into  stocky  clumps,  some  of  them  eighteen  inches 
high;  a  red  variety,  and  they  blanched  well  without 
trouble.     All  I  had  to  do  was  to  weed  and  water." 


EXPERIMENTAL    GARDENING  I93 

This   garden   account   received   a   regular   award   of 
ten  dollars. 

A  Plucky  Bay  State  Woman,  Abbie  E.  C. 
Lathrop,  Hampshire  county,  Massachusetts,  not  being 
strong  and  well  enough  to  swing  a  hoe,  did  much  of 
the  weeding  in  her  garden  of  one  thousand  seven  hun- 
dred square  feet  with  an  old  butcher  knife,  and  the 
weeds  were  well  conquered,  greatly  to  the  benefit  of  the 
gardener's  health.  She  says:  "The  work  of  planting, 
tending  and  gathering  was  done  entirely  by  myself, 
demonstrating  that  a  woman,  though  not  strong,  may 
tend  a  garden,  if  she  will  but  take  the  work  leisurely. 
It  is  more  healthful  than  bicycling.  The  keeping  of 
accounts  proved  very  interesting."  The  account  was 
one  of  the  best  of  those  not  winning  a  prize. 

A  Successful  Garden  was  cultivated  on  the  site 
of  an  abandoned  brickyard  by  Jere  Bradley  of  Berk- 
shire county,  Massachusetts,  twenty-second  regular 
prize  winner.  Soil  was  sandy  loam  with  heavy  clay 
subsoil ;  area  about  one-twelfth  acre.  The  work  was 
all  done  mornings,  evenings  and  holidays,  the  owner 
being  employed  in  a  grain  store.  The  system  was  to 
cultivate  with  wheel  hoe  in  the  spring,  then  mulch 
heavily,  the  result  being  a  garden  free  from  weeds. 
Hand  wheel  garden  tools  were  used.  Chicken  netting 
was  used  instead  of  pea  brush.  Cabbage  and  lettuce 
were  grown  in  a  hotbed,  melons  were  planted  between 
rows  of  peas.  Cultivation  ceased  July  4  and  the 
ground  was  mulched. 

The  management  shows  skill  in  keeping  a  constant 
succession  of  market  crops,  giving  something  to  sell 
almost  every  day  to  November  i.  Drouth  was  fought 
successfully  by  frequently  stirring  the  soil  with  garden 
implements. 

Frost  Every  Month  proved  a  serious  drawback  in 
the  case  of  A.  C.  Butcher,  Whitman  county,  Washing- 


194  PRIZE     GARDENING 

ton,  winner  of  a  regular  prize  of  five  dollars.  However, 
the  patch  of  a  fraction  over  two  acres  netted  him  thirty 
dollars  and  six  cents.  The  season  proved  too  short 
for  potatoes,  cucumbers  and  other  tender  vegetables, 
but  he  thinks  he  might  succeed  next  time  by  planting 
everything  of  the  very  earliest  varieties.  Corn  filled 
poorly  and  only  the  early  kinds  would  mature.  Cab- 
bages thrive,  but  early  and  medium  varieties  were  best. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

METHODS    UNDER   GLASS 

For  starting  all  early  vegetables,  a  hotbed  or 
greenhouse  is  absolutely  necessary.  The  hotbed  may 
be  simply  a  frame  of  boards  set  over  a  pile  of  manure 
and  covered  with  a  glass  or  muslin  sash,  or  it  may  be 
an  expensive  structure  made  by  excavating  a  pit  and 
building  a  masonry  wall  of  bricks  and  mortar.  This  is 
the  best  sort  of  hotbed,  and  when  once  built  will  last 
for  many  years,  and  give  better  satisfaction  than  any 
other  style.  But  the  expense  is  something  which  the 
majority  of  farmers  and  gardeners  cannot  afford,  so 
that  a  pit  lined  with  two-inch  plank  is  the  next  best 
substitute.  But  where  gardening  is  carried  on  on  a 
large  scale  a  small  forcing  house  or  hotbed  heated  by  a 
small  stove  will  be  found  much  more  economical  and 
satisfactory.  The  forcing  house  contains  a  larger 
amount  of  air  and  can  be  run  at  a  more  uniform  tem- 
perature. 

A  CHEAP  FORCING   HOUSE 

The  ordinary  style  of  forcing  house,  heated  with 
steam  or  hot  water  pipes  under  the  benches,  is,  of 
course,  the  best,  but  one  in  which  bottom  heat  is  given 
by  a  flue  made  by  extending  the  pipe  from  the  stove 
under  the  benches  is  quite  satisfactory.  Very  good 
results  have  been  obtained  by  John  Frazer  of  Wash- 
ington county.  New  York,  one  of  the  garden  contest 
prize  winners,  by  using  a  house  which  was  heated  with 
three  stoves,  one  at  each  end  and  one  in  the  middle. 


METHODS  UNDER  GLASS  197 

The  house  was  seventy  by  twenty  feet,  divided 
into  a  center  bed  nine  and  one-half  by  sixty-two  feet, 
and  two  outside  beds  next  to  the  wall,  each  three  and 
one-half  feet  wide.  All  seed  was  sown  in  rows  four 
inches  apart.  One  outside  bed  was  planted  early  in 
March  to  radish  and  celery  plants  in  alternate  rows, 
the  radishes  being  harvested  before  the  celery  plants 
needed  the  room.  The  other  beds  were  planted  to 
lettuce,  cauliflower,  pepper,  tomato,  Prizetaker  onion, 
beet  and  cabbage  seeds.  About  one  hundred  thousand 
celery  plants  were  grown  on  the  one  bed.  Toward  the 
last  of  April,  sods  were  inverted  on  the  benches,  on 
which  were  planted  cucumber  and  melon  seeds.  These 
were  set  in  the  open  ground  about  June  i. 

The  hot])ed  should  be  placed  on  land  always  free 
from  flooding,  and  with  good  subsoil  drainage,  pro- 
tected from  the  north  and  west  winds  and  facing  south 
or  southeast.  The  manure  must  be  well  handled,  so 
that  the  fermentation  may  be  prolonged.  Rich,  fresh 
horse  manure  gives  a  quick,  fierce  heat  and  soon  sub- 
sides. i\Iix  it  with  leaves  or  half-rotten  strawy  put  in 
a  pile  and  turn  over  two  or  three  times  at  intervals  of 
two  or  three  days  to  get  it  well  heated  throughout. 
Put  in  the  pit,  tramp  down  firmly  and  evenly  and  put 
on  the  sash.  After  the  heat  has  subsided  to  ninety 
degrees,  put  on  four  to  six  inches  of  soil,  and  when  this 
is  well  warmed  up  sow  the  seed  in  rows  four  to  six 
inches  apart.  Water  with  a  fine  hose  and  tepid  water 
as  needed.  Give  air  on  pleasant  days,  and  protect 
during  cold  nights  with  a  covering  of  salt  hay,  straw 
mats  or  old  carpets. 

A  Farmer's  Hotbed. — A  hotbed  such  as  is  used 
by  a  large  number  of  gardeners  and  farmers  is  thus 
described  by  J.  E.  Morse  of  Michigan,  who  won  the 
grand  garden  prize  of  seven  hundred  and  fifty  dollars. 
The    bed    was    six    bv    twelve    feet,    sunk    two    feet 


198  PRIZE     GARDENING 

below  the  surface  of  the  ground.  In  making  the 
framework,  hemlock  lumber  one  inch  thick  was  used 
and  posts  two  by  four  inches  at  each  corner  and  mid- 
way between.  At  the  north  side,  the  framework 
extended  one  foot  above  ground ;  at  the  south,  it 
extended  six  inches  above,  giving  a  six-inch  slope  to  the 
sash.  The  glass  used  in  fitting  sashes  was  eight  by  ten. 
Horse  manure,  which  had  been  cured  under  shelter, 
freed  from  coarse  litter  and  forked  over  a  number  of 
times,  was  solidly  tramped  down  in  the  bed  to  a  depth 
of  eighteen  inches.  The  sashes  were  then  put  on,  and 
left  for  four  days  before  adding  the  soil.  After  cover- 
ing with  soil,  the  bed  was  let  stand  for  four  days.  This 
allowed  the  soil  to  warm  up  and  weed  seed  to  ger- 
minate. It  was  then  raked  over  fine  and  even,  and  the 
soil  firmed  lightly  with  a  wide  board  before  sowing 
the  seed. 

A  quick  way  of  making  up  hotbeds  is  followed  by 
W.  H.  McMillen,  a  large  Wisconsin  market  gardener. 
He  says :  "  I  haul  three  good  loads  of  coarse  manure 
for  each  frame,  pile  it  up  and  let  stand  for  five  or  six 
days,  then  fork  it  over  into  another  pile,  when  it  will 
begin  to  heat,  and  then  pile  it  over  again,  and  when  it 
is  steaming  well  I  pace  off  the  size  of  the  frames, 
spreading  the  manure  evenly,  fifteen  inches  larger  each 
way  than  the  frames,  and  tramp  it  down  firm.  I  then 
place  the  frames,  bank  them  up  well  and  put  on  the 
sash,  and  leave  it  for  seven  or  eight  days.  Then  if  the 
manure  is  heated  evenly,  put  on  about  four  inches  of 
good  earth  and  let  down  a  sash  at  each  end  about  six 
inches  to  allow  the  rank  heat  to  escape.  After  the  third 
day  I  sow  the  seeds.  Great  care  must  be  taken  that  the 
earth  is  warm  all  through.  When  the  plants  are  about 
four  inches  high,  transplant  to  a  cold  frame,  which  is 
made  on  the  same  plan  as  the  hotbed,  except  with  a 
covering  of  cloth  instead  of  glass." 


METHODS  UNDER  GLASS  1 99 

Mr.  Kiiuicy's  Plan. — The  ground  in  the  betl 
should  be  forked  up  as  fine  as  possible  and  left  soft 
and  loose,  according-  to  the  advice  of  F.  L.  Kinney,  a 
prominent  gardener  of  Worcester  county,  Massachu- 
setts. Forest  leaves  are  perhaps  the  best  thing  to  put 
in  to  keep  the  frost  out,  and  if  there  is  danger  of  mice, 
it  might  be  well  to  let  the  ground  freeze  a  little  before 
putting  the  leaves  in,  and  it  would  be  a  good  thing  to 
put  in  a  little  com  and  smaller  seeds  that  have  been 
sprinkled  with  poison  while  wet,  so  that  the  mice, 
should  they  find  their  way  in,  would  not  flourish.  The 
bed  is  now  ready  to  close  up  with  the  sash  and  shutters, 
and  when  the  sash  are  all  on,  put  in  the  last  end  piece. 
This  work  should  be  done  before  winter  and  the  bed 
can  be  filled  with  the  horse  manure  at  any  time. 

Put  in  plenty  of  manure  and  cover  with  eight 
inches  or  so  of  loam.  Lettuce  is  the  one  great  crop 
that  is  grown  under  glass  in  winter  and  early  spring, 
and  to  grow  this  to  perfection  it  is  very  desirable,  and 
it  is  often  almost  necessary,  to  have  a  loose,  sandy  soil. 
My  soil  is  heavy  and  I  have  tried  a  great  many  things 
to  put  it  in  good  condition  for  this  crop,  but  have  never 
been  able  to  get  perfectly  satisfactory  results.  Fleavy 
manuring  and  stirring  the  soil  help  considerably.  Tur- 
nip radishes  will  grow  on  most  any  soil,  but  long  ones 
need  a  loose,  mellow  soil  and  do  not  need  so  much 
bottom  heat  as  lettuce  or  turnip  radishes. 

During  March  and  April  many  of  the  sash  in  Mr. 
Kinney's  place  are  used  for  starting  plants.  Cabbage, 
cauliflower,  lettuce  and  early  celery  should  be  sown 
about  the  first  of  March  for  the  first  early  crop.  It  is 
possible  to  raise  fairly  good  plants  by  sowing  thinly. 
We  prefer  sowing  in  drills  and  giving  the  young  plants 
plenty  of  air,  and  when  they  have  three  or  four  true 
leaves,  set  them  in  a  bed,  about  two  hundred  to  the  sash. 


200  PRIZE     GARDENING 

Ite^ns  of  Care. — In  writing  of  the  management  of 
hotbeds,  W.  I.  Anderson  advises  not  to  sow  seed  in 
them  before  the  first  week  in  March.  Then  sow  cab- 
bage, lettuce,  radishes,  beets  and  tomatoes.  Use  Early 
Jersey  Wakefield  cabbage.  Grand  Rapid  lettuce,  Egyp- 
tian beets,  Dwarf  Champion  tomatoes.  Early  Scarlet 
Turnip  radish,  and  it  would  be  well  to  use  Wood's 
Long  Early  Frame  radish,  too,  so  as  to  prolong 
the  crop. 

Be  sure  the  heat  is  not  too  strong  when  you  plant, 
as  much  seed  is  ruined  because  of  this.  Remember  it 
gets  hot  quickly  under  glass  when  the  sun  shines  on  it, 
and  small,  tender  plants  will  soon  perish  unless  they 
get  fresh  air.  But  a  olast  of  cold  wind  will  kill  them 
almost  as  quickly  as  the  sjn.  Open  the  sash  in  such  a 
way  that  the  wind  cannot  hit  them.  In  plants  raised 
for  transplanting,  let  your  object  be  to  get  them  stocky 
instead  of  spindling,  hardy  instead  of  tender,  and 
healthy  with  a  deep,  rich  green,  instead  of  pale  and 
sickly.  Abundance  of  fresh  air  and  sufficient  moisture 
will  do  it.  Keep  as  even  temperature  as  you  can.  Do 
not  hurry  the  plants.  Good  ones  are  better  than  quick 
ones.  Water  heavily  rather  than  often.  Stir  the  soil 
and  keep  it  loose  at  all  times.  Give  air  as  soon  as  the 
sun  strikes  the  glass  in  the  morning,  but  close  up  early 
in  the  evening.  Let  the  plants  have  all  the  sunlight 
possible. 

Some  plants,  asserts  Mr.  Anderson,  such  as  onions, 
cabbage,  lettuce,  etc.,  will  st?nd  more  cold  than  toma- 
toes, peppers,  Qgg  plant  and  the  like.  The  proper  tem- 
perature for  these  two  classes  differs  almost  twenty 
degrees.  When  possible,  grow  them  under  different 
sashes,  where  you  can  regulate  the  heat  if  you  will 
remember  what  I  said  about  constructing  the  hotbed. 
About  April  i  the  radishes  ought  to  be  ready  to  use. 


METHODS    L.NUliK   GLASS  201 

As  soon  as  removed  sow  in  their  place  celery,  peppers, 
egg  plants  and  a  second  seeding  of  tomatoes. 

Take  the  cabbage,  lettuce  and  beets  out  of  the  hot- 
bed some  days  before  you  plant  and  give  them  all  the 
air  and  cold  that  they  will  stand  so  as  to  harden  them. 
Then  transplant  cabbage  four  inches  apart,  lettuce  five, 
beets  in  rows  ten  inches  apart.  This  can  be  done  in  the 
open  ground,  as  these  things  will  stand  freezing.  Mr. 
Anderson  has  had  cabbage  plants  in  open  ground  when 
it  was  twenty-two  degrees  below  freezing  and  they 
made  good  heads.  JJut  it  will  be  much  better,  he  thinks, 
if  a  frame  can  be  around  them  over  which  coverings 
can  be  placed  in  freezing  weather.  As  soon  as  the 
tomatoes  are  large  enough,  transplant  them  in  the 
hotbed  in  the  space  before  occupied  by  the  boxes.  Tliey 
should  be  four  to  six  inches  aj^art  and  should  remain 
there  until  they  bloom. 

Useful  Details. — W.  H.  Pillon,  Ontario  county, 
New  York,  a  leading  special  prize  winner,  gives  details 
for  forcing  several  kinds  of  tender  plants,  as  follows : 
I  sowed  egg  plant,  tomato  and  pepper  seed,  March  30, 
in  a  small  box  in  the  house.  Good  garden  soil  was  put 
in  the  bottom  of  the  box  with  one-fourth  fine  rotted 
manure,  filling  within  an  inch  of  the  top,  then  one- 
half  inch  of  woods  mold.  I  made  little  drills  three 
inches  apart  and  one-half  inch  deep,  with  a  pointed 
stick.  I  sowed  the  seed  in  these  drills  and  covered 
lightly,  using  a  case  knife  and  pressing  the  soil  upon 
the  seed  with  the  knife.  I  used  small  plant  labels, 
numbered,  between  each  variety  of  seed.  I  also  kept 
a  record  in  my  diary  so  that  I  could  tell  where  each 
variety  was  when  I  wanted  to  place  them  in  the  hotbed. 

After  sowing,  I  watered  the  soil  and  covered  it 
with  a  cloth.  In  three  days  I  watered  it  again,  drop- 
ping the  water  upon  the  cloth,  and  after  that  whenever 
the  soil  seemed  too  dry.    The  box  was  kept  on  a  small 


202  PRIZE     GARDENING 

table  close  to  a  south  window,  in  a  room  where  a  coal 
fire  was  kept  night  and  day.  At  night  the  box  was 
moved  near  the  stove.  Tomato  seeds  came  up  finely  in 
seven  days,  tgg  plant  and  peppers  fairly  well  in  four- 
teen days.  As  the  seeds  came  up  the  cloth  was 
removed  and  the  box  turned  each  day  so  as  to  have  the 
opposite  side  placed  next  to  the  window,  as  the  plants 
will  lean  toward  the  light. 

I  made  a  hotbed,  April  lo,  using  three  sash  frames 
I  have  had  five  years.  I  took  out  last  year's  dirt  and 
manure,  and  in  the  bottom  put  two  loads  of  horse 
manure.  One  man  threw  in  the  manure  while  another 
kept  it  evenly  spread  and  trodden  down ;  not  very  hard, 
but  so  as  to  keep  it  from  settling.  Then  four  inches  of 
last  year's  dirt  was  thrown  in,  and  about  an  inch  of 
fresh  black  garden  mold  spread  over  it.  With  a  gar- 
den rake  I  drew  out  all  the  coarse  lumps,  leaving  the 
soil  fine.  The  sash  was  then  put  on  and  kept  closed 
night  and  day,  until  I  sowed  some  seed.  I  banked  up 
with  dirt  outside  the  frame  to  within  one  or  two  inches 
of  the  top  of  the  frame,  the  bank  of  last  year  having 
been  allowed  to  remain  in  place  the  whole  year. 

Sowed  in  the  hotbed,  April  13,  cabbage  twelve 
varieties,  broccoli  one,  cauliflower  two,  lettuce  one, 
asters  six,  mignonette  one,  pansies  one,  verbena  two. 
I  made  drills  four  inches  apart,  one-half  inch  in  depth, 
with  a  pointed  stick.  I  sowed  the  seed  in  the  drills  and 
covered  them  by  brushing  a  garden  hoe  lightly  over 
them  lengthwise,  which  also  pressed  the  soil  sufiiciently 
close  to  the  seed.  I  kept  a  record  of  the  sowing  and 
marked  the  different  varieties  with  a  numbered  plant 
label  between  each  two  kinds.  The  soil  was  watered 
with  a  fine-nosed  watering  pot  and  covered,  with  a 
cloth.  After  this  the  bed  was  watered  every  two  or 
three  days  as  seemed  necessary.  When  plants  came  up 
the  cloth  was  removed.     The  sashes  were  kept  closed 


METHODS   UNDER  GLASS 


203 


most  of  the  time  after  sowing  the  seed,  occasionally 
some  air  was  given  by  raising  the  sashes  an  inch. 
After  the  plants  were  up,  some  air  was  given  every  day 
and  a  good  deal  of  it  when  the  sun  shone  brightly,  to 
prevent  the  stems  rotting  off  close  to  the  ground, 
thereby  losing  the  plants.  1  find  cabbage  more  sus- 
ceptible to  this  disease  than  tomatoes,  although  any 
plant  will  suffer  if  not  properly  aired. 

I  pricked  out  tomato  plants,  April  20,  from  the 
box,  and  placed  them  in  the  hotbed  four  inches  apart 


HOTBEDS  AND  COLD  FRAMES 


each  way.  The  plants  were  taken  from  the  box  by 
thrusting  a  case  knife  below  them,  holding  the  plants 
by  the  top  with  one  hand  while  raising  the  knife  with 
the  other,  thus  avoiding  breaking  the  roots.  A  hole 
was  made  for  the  plants  with  a  wooden  drill.  The 
plants  were  placed  in  the  hole  and  the  dirt  pressed 
firmly  up  to  them,  then  some  loose  soil  was  drawn  up 
to  them  on  the  top  of  the  ground.    After  being  set  they 


-504  PRIZE    GARDENlNGt 

were  watered,  and  while  the  sun  shone,  from  9  a.  m.  to 
4  p.  m.,  the  sash  over  the  plants  was  covered  with  a 
cloth  for  two  days.  They  were  watered  and  aired  as 
required,  and  the  ground  stirred  about  them  with  a 
dung  fork  about  once  a  week  until  they  were  ready  to 
set  out  of  doors. 

A  Very  Practical  Gardener  and  contestant,  G.  J. 
Townsend  of  Wayne  county,  New  York,  describes 
his  successful  hotbeds  and  cold  frames  as  follows  :  My 
hotbeds  are  eighteen  feet  long  and  five  feet  Vvide. 
Used  two-inch  plank  twelve  inches  wide.  The  most  of 
the  sashes  are  three  by  five  feet.  Some  are  three  by  six 
feet,  but  the  three  by  five  feet  are  the  most  convenient 
size.  I  dug  out  about  two  feet  deep,  filled  with  good 
fresh  horse  manure  that  had  commenced  to  heat. 
Tramped  well,  then  put  on  about  four  or  five  inches  of 
dirt  that  had  been  worked  well  the  year  before,  and 
middling  dry.  I  put  on  the  sashes  about  three  or  four 
weeks  before  making.  Work  over  the  dirt  some  and 
the  sun  will  dry  it  out ;  then  shovel  it  out  one  side,  and 
take  out  old  manure  and  put  in  fresh.  The  best  dirt 
is  a  good  sandy  loam.  Put  on  dirt  and  sashes,  let 
stand  for  a  week  or  so  until  rank  heat  passes  off.  Give 
air  in  the  daytime.    Put  a  thermometer  in. 

I  worked  the  dirt  fine  on  a  sunny  March  day  in  the 
hotbeds  and  sowed  the  seed  one-half  or  three-fourths 
inch  deep  in  drills  three  inches  apart.  I  sowed  and 
covered  by  hand,  then  watered  them.  Gave  some  air  on 
sunny  days.  When  tomatoes  are  up  keep  watch  of  the 
thermometer  that  it  does  not  get  below  forty-two  or 
above  eighty  long.  Let  air  in  on  sunny  days  from  nine 
or  ten  o'clock  to  about  three  or  four,  and  a  little  on 
cloudy  days  if  not  too  cold.  To  let  off  dampness 
when  tomatoes  come  up  until  second  leaves  appear, 
water  very  little,  but  keep  the  ground  just  moist.  If 
they   commence   to   damp   off    I    loosen   the   ground 


METHODS  UNDER  GLASS 


205 


between  the  rows  with  Hazeltine  hand  weeder.  Water 
toward  eveninj:;^,  taking  the  chill  off  in  cold  weather.  On 
cold  nights  I  cover  the  sashes  with  canvas  or  blankets ; 
if  very  cold  with  fine  hay  or  horse  manure.  When 
tomatoes  are  about  three  inches  high  I  transplant  them 
to  cold  frame. 

In  April   I   make  cold   frames  same  as   hotbeds, 
except  use  no  manure.     Set  tomatoes  in  cold  frame 


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MR.  G.  J.  TOWNSEND,  HIS  WORKSHOP  AND  COLD  FRAMES 


about  three  inches  apart.  Take  a  strip  about  three 
inches  wide  and  four  or  five  feet  long  to  mark  out  with. 
Have  the  ground  mellow.  Make  hole  with  right  fore- 
finger. In  this  way  I  can  set  three  or  four  thousand  a 
day.  If  boxes  are  used  they  should  be  made  in  the 
winter  time.  I  buy  boxes  for  about  five  cents  apiece  at 
the  grocery  store  that  will  make  from  two  to  twelve 
dozen  plant  boxes.    I  use  glass  for  the  cold  frames  the 


206  PRIZE     GARDENING 

first  half  of  April,  and  five  or  six-cent  cotton  cloth  the 
*last  half.  Cold  frames  need  covering  every  night  the 
first  half  of  April  with  canvas  or  blankets.  I  lost  three 
hundred  tomato  plants  in  cold  frame  by  frost  by  not 
doing  it.  Water  just  enough  to  keep  them  growing. 
About  a  week  after  they  are  set  out  stir  the  dirt  with  a 
hand  weeder. 

Massachusetts  Methods. — Writing  along  similar 
lines,  a  prominent  and  successful  contestant,  E.  R. 
Flagg,  Worcester  county,  Massachusetts,  thus  de- 
scribes his  methods :  April  29  a  cold  frame  was  pre- 
pared by  placing  four  boards,  each  about  a  foot  wide, 
together  like  a  box  without  top  or  bottom,  so  as  to 
enclose  a  space  six  feet  square.  On  top  of  this  frame 
were  placed  two  hotbed  sash,  each  three  feet  wide  and 
six  feet  long.  The  north  side  of  the  frame  was  raised 
enough  to  give  the  sash  a  pitch  of  about  four  inches 
toward  the  south.  Eighteen  inches  in  thickness  of 
stable  manure  was  banked  about  the  outside  and  up  to 
the  top  of  the  frame. 

May  I,  the  glass  was  removed  and  the  rich  soil 
enclosed  by  the  frame  was  spaded  up,  thoroughly  fined, 
and  sufficient  soil  added  to  bring  the  surface,  when 
leveled,  about  six  inches  from  the  glass.  A  wheelbar- 
row load  of  well-rotted  stable  manure,  two  quarts  of 
unleached  wood  ashes  and  eight  quarts  of  sifted  hen 
manure  were  evenly  spread  over  the  surface  within  the 
frame  and  thoroughly  mixed  with  the  soil.  The  sur- 
face was  then  well  raked,  all  lumps  removed,  the  earth 
well  pressed  against  the  sides  of  the  frame  with  the 
head  of  the  rake,  and  a  final  raking  left  the  surface  of 
the  soil  everywhere  equally  distant  from  the  top  of  the 
frame  and  the  glass. 

The  pressing  of  the  soil  against  the  inner  side  of  the 
frame  is  important  in  order  to  prevent  uneven  settling 
of  the  earth  after  the  seed  is  sown.    An  uneven  surface 


METHODS    UNDER  GLASS  207 

makes  the  even  and  proper  watering  of  tiny  plants 
impossible.  After  the  soil  was  prepared  the  seed  was 
sown. 

The  radish  seeds  were  sown  in  rows  where  they 
could  mature,  and  the  other  seeds  in  squares  of  one 
foot  or  less.  All  seeds  were  covered  by  sifting-  on  a 
thin  layer  of  rich  earth  and  fine  sand,  equal  parts,  well 
mixed.  The  depth  of  covering,  as  a  general  rule, 
should  not  exceed  twice  the  diameter  of  the  seed 
covered. 

The  different  varieties  were  marked  by  small 
strips  of  shingle  on  which  the  name  of  the  variety  was 
written  in  pencil.  Care  was  taken  in  sowing,  to  sepa- 
rate varieties  of  the  same  kind  of  seed,  as  All-head  and 
Sun-head  cabbage,  by  some  other  seed,  as  tomato  or 
onion.  In  this  way  there  was  no  difficulty  in  identify- 
ing all  the  varieties. 

The  seeds  above  named  occupied  about  two-thirds 
of  the  area  of  the  frame,  and  a  few  flower  and  other 
seeds  were  sown  in  the  spare  corner.  The  earth  was 
gently  firmed  over  the  seed  by  moderate  pressure  on  a 
bit  of  board,  and  a  pail  of  water,  moderately  warm, 
was  applied  with  a  watering  pot  having  a  fine  nose. 
The  sash  was  then  placed  on  the  frame  and  closed 
down.  During  sunny  days  the  upper  end  of  the  sash 
was  raised  an  inch  or  more  for  ventilation,  and  luke- 
warm water  was  applied  when  the  soil  appeared  to 
require  moisture. 

The  seeds  were  sown  ]\Iay  i,  and  on  May  4, 
radish,  lettuce  and  cabbage  plants  were  breaking  the 
ground,  followed  two  or  three  days  by  the  other  varie- 
ties, excepting  parsley,  which  requires  more  time  for 
germination.  The  frame  was  covered  nights  with  two 
old  blankets,  as  the  nights  were  cool  and  frost  occurred 
on  May  4,  13,  15  and  22. 


208  PRIZE     GARDENING 

As  the  plants  grew  larger  and  the  weather  became 
warmer,  more  ventilation  was  given  by  raising  the  sash 
at  the  top  and  bottom.  Warm  water  was  still  used,  but 
care  was  taken  to  apply  only  so  much  as  the  plants  re- 
quired for  thrifty  growth.  Too  liberal  watering  and 
too  little  ventilation  induce  the  rotting  of  the  stems 
of  the  plants,  known  among  greenhouse  men  as 
damping-off.  May  i8,  the  radishes  were  forming 
bulbous  roots,  and  lettuce,  cauliflower  and  cabbage 
plants  were  of  sufficient  size  to  transplant  into  the 
unoccupied  space  in  the  frame.  May  20,  the  radishes 
were  large  enough  for  use  and  some  were  pulled  for 
the  table.  As  the  weather  grew  warmer  the  ventilation 
was  increased  until  the  sashes  were  removed  altogether 
and  the  frame  was  covered  with  netting ;  two-inch  mesh 
was  placed  over  the  cold  frame  to  exclude  chickens. 
No  future  care,  except  occasional  watering,  was 
required  while  the  plants  remained  in  the  cold  frame. 

Forcing  Cucumbers  and  Tomatoes. — Some  of  the 
essentials  are  described  by  G.  C.  Stone,  a  Massachusetts 
expert :  Cucumbers,  he  asserts,  require  a  temperature 
from  sixty-five  to  eighty-five  degrees.  They  are  not 
especially  sensitive  to  mechanical  conditions  of  the  soil, 
neither  do  they  respond  very  quickly  to  fertilizer.  A 
good  soil  for  cucumbers  is  one  made  of  rotten  sod  and 
horse  manure.    This  makes  a  light,  pliable  soil. 

They  require  all  the  light  possible  under  glass, 
especially  November  and  March,  a  matter  which  is  too 
little  understood  by  those  growing  cucumbers.  Some 
of  the  so-called  diseases  can  be  traced  directly  to  the 
lack  of  light  in  the  house.  This  is  especially  true  where 
growers  have  resorted  to  the  practice  of  using  two 
layers  of  glass  in  their  houses.  The  plants  under  such 
conditions  become  yellow ;  they  cannot  assimilate  the 
carbon  dioxide  from  the  air  properly,  as  the  light  is 


METHODS    UNDER   GLASS  209 

largely  excluded  by  the  two  layers  of  glass  and  the 
usflal  two  accompanying  layers  of  dirt. 

There  are  ten  fungous  diseases  peculiar  to  the 
cucumber.  The  wilt  is  peculiar  to  outdoor  cucumbers. 
This  is  caused  by  bacteria  which  plug  up  the  vessels, 
thus  interfering  with  the  water  supply.  This  has  not 
been  seen  on  outdoor  cucumbers  in  Massachusetts. 

The  powdery  mildew  is  more  or  less  common  and 
can  be  controlled  by  attention  to  moisture  conditions 
and  light.  It  is  seldom  found  on  vigorous  plants  of 
good  texture. 

The  damping  fungus  is  troublesome  to  young 
cucumbers  and  can  be  prevented  by  sterilizing  the  soil. 

The  anthracnose  would  seem  to  be  caused  by  too 
great  a  difference  between  the  day  and  night  tempera- 
ture. On  this  account  it  is  far  more  common  in  the 
spring  in  greenhouses  when  the  fires  go  out. 

Besides  fungous  diseases  there  are  two  or  three 
troublesome  pests  which  belong  to  the  animal  kingdom, 
known  as  aphis  and  thrip,  both  of  which  are  controlled 
by  tobacco,  and  nematodes,  which  give  rise  to  galls  on 
the  roots  and  can  be  controlled  by  the  application  of 
heat  or  by  thorough  drying  of  the  soil. 

Tomatoes  require  similar  temperature  and  mois- 
ture conditions  to  those  of  the  cucumber.  There  are 
some  twelve  fungous  diseases  recorded  for  tomatoes, 
but  the  fruit  rot  and  mildew  are  the  most  troublesome 
diseases  of  these  parts.  These  can  be  controlled  by 
spraying.  They  also,  like  the  cucumbers,  are  subject 
to  nematodes  and  the  same  method  of  treatment  applies 
t .  both. 

Forcing  Lettuce. — The  ideal  soil  for  lettuce, 
according  to  C.  E.  Hunn  of  New  York,  would  be 
a  well-drained  gravelly  or  sandy  loam,  but  with  care 
in  watering,  a  soil  of  heavy  texture  may  be  made  to 
produce  excellent  crops  of  the  loose,  open  varieties. 


210  PRIZE     GARDENING 

The  heading  or  cabbage  lettuce  is  more  exacting  if  a 
fine  quahty  is  desired.  The  first  crop  of  lettuce  from 
the  houses  should  be  ready  to  use  by  the  middle  of 
November. 

For  this  crop,  seed  should  be  sown  in  September, 
allowing  on  an  average  from  six  to  eight  weeks  for  the 
crop  to  mature.  A  temperature  of  fifty-five  to  sixty 
degrees  through  the  day,  with  a  drop  to  forty-five  at 
night,  will  suit  all  varieties,  but  in  the  case  of  the 
heading  varieties  a  rise  of  five  to  ten  degrees  at  the  time 
of  heading  will  finish  ofif  the  crop  more  uniformly. 

According  to  Hunn,  the  construction  of  a  house 
for  forcing  winter  vegetables  is  not  a  matter  of  first 
importance.  The  three-quarter  span  house  perhaps 
furnishes  as  nearly  as  possible  the  best  condition  for 
forced  crops.  However,  an  even-span  or  shed-roof 
house  grows  many  crops  to  a  high  degree  ol  perfection. 
As  for  the  inside  arrangement  of  the  house,  the  crops 
to  be  grown  will  have  much  to  do  in  the  matter. 

Cool-house  crops,  as  lettuce,  radish  and  the  like, 
are  well  grown  in  solid  beds,  while  heat-loving  plants, 
as  tomatoes,  cucumbers,  melons,  etc.,  should  be  planted 
on  benches  built  over  the  pipes.  This  means  that  the 
cost  of  building  a  greenhouse  depends  very  much  on 
what  crop  one  expects  to  grow.  The  saving  in  benches 
and  heat  in  houses  devoted  to  cold  crops  is  considerable, 
while  the  ease  with  which  such  crops  may  be  grown 
recommends  them  to  the  beginner. 

A  Minnesota  Competitor  made  a  cold  frame,  April 
14,  for  tomatoes  and  early  cabbage,  taking  two  boards 
five  f^et  k  -ig  and  one  foot  wide  for  the  sides,  and  two 
boards  three  feet  long  and  one  foot  wide  for  the  ends, 
and  made  a  box  with  no  bottom  to  it.  He  set  the  box 
in  the  ground  about  two  inches ;  dug  up  the  ground  on 
the  inside  and  sowed  the  seeds.    Then  he  took  one  of 


METHODS    UNDER  GLASS  211 

the  storm  windows  from  the  house  and  placed  it  on  top 
of  the  box,  and  the  cold  frame  was  complete. 

Coal  the  Best  Heat. — Every  farmer  should  have  a 
house  garden  for  winter  vegetables,  either  under  a 
glass  roof  on  the  dwelling  on  the  south  side,  or  near. 
Instead  of  burning  manure  to  start  plants  for  the  farm, 
they  should  be  started  with  wood  or  coal  heat.  The 
coal  heat  is  easier  to  regulate  and  those  who  have  used 
both  think  it  the  cheaper.  We  have  grown  two  hun- 
dred dollars  worth  of  lettuce  in  a  winter  when  we  had 
five  to  seven  cents  for  ten  radishes,  and  six  dollars  to 
seven  dollars  and  fifty  cents  a  barrel  for  lettuce. —  [R. 
Bingam,  New  Jersey. 

Small  Frames  were  made  by  a  New  York  gar- 
dener, the  sides  being  of  two  pieces  of  seven-inch  board, 
each  eleven  inches  long,  and  two  pieces  of  six-inch 
board,  eight  inches  long,  for  ends.  No  top  or  bottom. 
Nail  them  flush  at  the  bottom,  so  as  to  make  a  frame 
eleven  inches  long  by  ten  inches  wide  outside,  and  nine 
inches  long  by  eight  inches  wide  inside,  with  the  top 
edges  of  the  side  boards  rising  an  inch  above  the  end 
boards.  Now  lay  an  eight  by  ten-inch  glass  between 
the  projecting  sides,  one-half  inch  resting  on  each 
board.  Secure  it  from  slipping  by  a  big-headed  tack 
at  each  end.  Then  set  it  over  the  freshly  planted 
cucumber  or  melon  hill.  It  protects  from  frost,  serves 
as  a  forcing  frame,  and  keeps  off  insects  while  the  vines 
are  small.  Made  on  rainy  days,  of  waste  boards,  they 
cost  nothing  but  the  glass. 


CHAPTER  XV 


SUCCESS    WITH    SPECIALTIES 


While  the  prize  gardens  usually  contained  a  full 
assortment  of  vegetables,  and  often  of  fruit  and  flowers 
also,  the  description  in  many  cases  showed  that  the 
gardener  was  more  or  less  of  a  specialist  with  some 
one  or  two  crops.  He  had  grown  these  leading  crops 
with  distinct  success  and  was  thoroughly  at  home 
in  relating  the  details  of  their  management.  Many 
of  these  special  descriptions  are  included  in  the  general 
garden  accounts  in  other  chapters,  the  others  are 
grouped  together  here  under  the  various  crop  headings. 

Potatoes  in  Nezv  Jersey. — In  northern  and  central 
New  Jersey  white  potatoes  are  a  staple  crop,  and  the 
methods  are  labor-saving  and  businesslike.  They  are 
well  described  by  A.  Engle  Haines,  a  Burlington 
county  grower.  A  rotation  followed  brings  potatoes  on 
same  ground  once  in  five  years,  corn  being  the  preced- 
ing crop.  After  husking  in  November,  New  York 
horse  manure  of  best  quality  is  spread  on  rye,  which 
is  sown  to  plow  down,  at  the  rate  of  twelve  tons  per 
acre.    Plowing  is  commenced  about  April  i. 

The  seed  is  purchased  in  Aroostook  county, 
Maine.  Fertilizer  is  applied  at  the  rate  of  one  thousand 
pounds  per  acre,  in  rows  two  feet  nine  inches  apart. 
Rows  of  this  width  are  desirable  on  account  of  vines 
covering  ground  entirely  before  hot  weather.  Ferti- 
lizer should  not  have  less  than  ten  per  cent  potash. 

The  seed  is  cut,  as  far  as  possible,  to  one  eye,  and 
plaster  put  on  immediately.     Cutting  should  be  done 


SUCCESS  WITH  SPECIALTIES  213 

four  days  before  planting,  so  as  to  heal.  Planting  is 
deep  enough  so  ground  may  be  harrowed  across  the 
rows,  thus  disposing  of  first  crop  of  weeds. 

The  weeder  is  used  every  three  days  in  the  after- 
noon, and  never  in  the  morning,  until  after  sprouts  are 
large  enough  to  be  cultivated,  which  is  done  alternately 
with  a  one-horse  peg-tooth  and  a  two-horse  riding 
cultivator. 

The  one-horse  arrangement  pulls  the  dirt  away, 
while  the  two-horse  tends  to  ridge,  and  by  using  both 
the  soil  is  kept  perfectly  level,  which  is  very  important, 
especially  in  time  of  drouth.  The  weeder  follows  every 
cultivation  until  plants  are  twelve  inches  high,  making 
the  ground  fine  and  breaking  crust  around  the  stems. 
The  ground  should  be  stirred  at  least  every  week  and 
oftener  if  it  rains  oftener. 

During  the  season  of  1900  there  was  a  very  severe 
local  drouth,  no  soaking  rain  falling  during  growing 
season.  We  succeeded  in  harvesting  a  crop  of  potatoes 
that  )ear  with  only  six  per  cent  culls.  The  variety 
depends  on  kind  of  ground,  location,  etc. 

Late  Planted  Crop  was  produced  with  success  by 
R.  Bingam  of  New  Jersey,  who  writes :  We  are  try- 
ing to  improve  farm  practice  by  earlier  planting  in  the 
south  side  of  ridges  thrown  up  in  furrowing  to  get 
more  sun  heat  and  protection  from  north  winds,  and  by 
covering  with  dry  weeds,  leaves  or  hay  to  ^^rotect  from 
frost  in  early  spring  or  late  fall.  I  have  potatoes  still 
green  November  21,  by  covering  three  times,  and  on 
an  adjoining  farm  those  planted  August  9  were  killed 
October  2.  Ours  were  planted  September  7,  and  are 
fair  size  for  planting.  We  make  our  rows  closer  and 
have  put  one  plant  in  a  place,  getting  more  plants  per 
acre  and  giving  each  more  room  to  feed  in.  Instead 
of  placing  the  food  below  the  roots,  where  it  obstructs 
the  rise  of  moisture  in  time  of  drouth,  we  place  it  on  the 


214  PRIZE    GARDENING 

surface,  where  it  conserves  moisture,  and  rains  carry  it 
to  the  roots  instead  of  to  the  rivers,  as  is  the  case  when 
placed  below  in  our  leachy  sand.  We  use  rakes  for 
close  work  among  plant  roots  instead  of  hoes. 

The  Potato  Field. — Potatoes  are  first  plowed  out, 
then  picked  up  and  carried  to  the  cellar.  The  ground 
is  then  harrowed  and  gleanings  picked  up.  The  field 
is  then  plowed  deeper  and  harrowed  again.  By  plow- 
ing deeper  the  deep-growing  potatoes  are  thrown  out. 

—  [Enos  Elton,  Douglas  county,  Nebraska. 

I  do  not  believe  in  planting  potatoes  early.  By 
watching  other  people's  patches,  I  have  decided  that 
it  does  not  increase  the  yield  to  freeze  off  the  tops. 

—  [J.  L.,  Tompkins  county,  New  York. 

People  that  use  small  potatoes  for  planting  with 
the  idea  of  saving,  lose  bushels  to  save  pecks.  Large 
seed  potatoes  at  three  dollars  per  bushel  are  preferable 
to  small  ones  as  a  gift.  The  potato  bug  must  have 
attention.  Paris  green  is  generally  used;  a  prepara- 
tion called  Bug  Death  is  far  superior.  One  application 
when  the  dew  is  on  is  sufficient  for  the  season.  It 
adheres  tenaciously  to  the  vines. —  [L.  E.  Dimock,  Tol- 
land county,  Connecticut. 

The  Nezv  Onion  Culture  is  described  by  E.  W. 
Godfrey,  Illinois,  as  follows :  I  planted  two  plots,  one 
of  Yellow  Danvers,  sowing  the  seed,  and  the  other  of 
Prizetaker,  the  seed  being  sown  in  hotbeds  and  trans- 
planted. To  begin  with,  I  bought  Greiner's  book,  The 
New  Onion  Culture,  and  followed  his  instructions  as 
carefully  as  possible.  In  everything  except  labor,  I 
found  his  statements  very  conservative.  He  puts  the 
labor  cost  of  weeding  and  hoeing  at  thirty  dollars  for 
seed  onions  and  twenty  dollars  for  transplanted.  I  put 
it  at  one  hundred  dollars  per  acre  in  any  good  growing 
season. 


SUCCESS  WITH  SPECIALTIES 


215 


One  cannot  insist  too  strongly  on  the  necessity  of 
fertilizing-.  When  the  labor  investment  is  so  heavy, 
it  is  the  worst  of  folly  to  economize  on  manures.  Poor 
land  will  hardly  pay  for  seed.  Average  good  land  will 
not  more  than  repay  labor  and  expenses,  while  rich 
land,  with  good  cultivation,  will  return  a  satisfactory 
profit.    I  believe  in  the  transplanting  method,  provided 


I.\(,  OM<».\> 


the  seed  can  be  sown  in  hotbeds  early  enough,  say  from 
February  15  to  March  i,  in  this  latitude  of  forty 
degrees,  so  the  plants  can  be  set  out  in  the  ground 
about  the  middle  of  April. 

In  this  way,  six  weeks  of  good  growing  weather 
is  gained.     By  using  large  varieties,  the  returns  will 


2l6 


1>RI2E    GARDENING 


amply  repay  the  extra  expense  of  transplanting.  But, 
if  for  any  reason,  there  is  much  delay  in  getting  the 
hotbed  started,  I  would  give  it  up  and  put  the  seed  into 
the  open  ground  as  early  as  possible,  using  plenty  of 
good  seed  to  get  a  full  stand. 

The  cost  of  transplanting  I  have  found  to  be 
about  fifty  dollars  per  acre,  that  is  one  man  and  five 
boys  at  three  dollars  and  fifty  cents  per  day  ought  to 


A  NEW  ENGLAND  ONION  CROP 


pull  and  transplant  twelve  thousand  sets  a  day.  Labor 
is  of  course  variable  and  experts  might  do  more,  but 
with  common  labor  one  picking  up  two  thousand  sets 
is  a  fair  day's  work.  Hence,  to  repay  for  transplanting 
one  must  get  one  hundred  bushels  extra  per  acre,  and 
this  can  only  be  done  by  using  the  big  varieties  and 
with  the  six  weeks  of  extra  growth.  With  both  these 
points  I  think  the  crop  ought  to  be  doubled  and  yield 


SUCCESS  WITH  SPECIALTIES  217 

four  hundred  to  six  hundred  bushels  extra  per  acre 
on  rich  ground. 

The  arguments  advanced  that  transplanting  saves 
seed  and  weeding  I  regard  as  of  no  value.  It  is  penny- 
wise  and  pound-foolish  to  try  and  save  seed.  If  it 
saved  weeding,  it  would  be  a  strong  argument,  but  I 
fail  to  see  that  it  helps.  There  are  just  so  many  weeds 
to  be  pulled.  It  is  of  course  easier  to  the  worker  to 
have  the  onions  a  uniform  distance  in  the  row,  but 
my  experience  shows  that  the  average  workman  will 


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PRIZE  ONIONS 

cover  no  more  ground  per  day.  As  to  long-handled 
hoeing  to  save  stooping,  I  do  not  think  it  can  be  done 
between  the  onions.  The  onion  worker  must  make  up 
his  mind  to  put  in  the  season  on  his  knees.  By  using 
padded  knee  cushions,  it  is  easier. 

In  Weeding  Onions,  observes  a  New  York  woman 
gardener,  I  always  find  it  the  best  way  to  use  my 
fingers.  To  be  successful  with  them  you  must  not  allow 
the  dirt  to  come  up  over  them.    When  I  speak  of  using 


2l8  PRIZE     GARDENING 

my  fingers,  I  mean  where  the  ground  is  soft.  Run  the 
finger  down  into  the  dirt  close  to  the  onion  and  work  up 
carefully  and  loosen  and  take  away  some  of  the  earth, 
and  as  they  get  larger  thin  them  well  and  take  away 
more  earth.  They  should  be,  when  full  grown,  stand- 
ing entirely  out  of  the  ground,  just  the  roots  only  in 
the  earth.  I  had  a  little  plot  in  my  garden,  seventeen  by 
thirty  feet,  and  gathered  eight  and  three-fourths 
bushels  of  marketable  onions  from  it. 

The  Onion  Harvest. — The  onions,  according  to 
the  methods  of  E.  Elton,  Douglas  county,  Nebraska, 
are  pulled,  throwing  five  rows  into  one,  and  let  dry  for 
a  couple  of  days.  They  are  then  picked  up  and  sold  or 
put  into  a  building  until  it  freezes  through  the  build- 
ing. They  are  then  taken  out  and  sold,  or  kept  near 
freezing  point  till  selling  price  is  better. 

Tomatoes  were  very  popular  as  a  prize  garden 
crop.  They  were  quite  generally  successful,  and  their 
profuse  yield  sometimes  saved  the  day,  so  far  as  con- 
cerned profit  from  the  season's  operations.  One  of 
the  most  complete  of  the  numerous  tomato  reports 
comes  from  A.  A.  Atwood  of  Iowa. 

His  tomato  seed  was  planted  in  a  bed  made  by 
driving  down  stakes  and  nailing  up  wide  boards  and 
covering  it  nights  and  cold  days.  It  was  planted  April 
15,  in  rows  five  to  six  inches  apart,  and  covered  one- 
half  inch  deep.  The  plants  came  up  slowly,  but  grew 
well,  and  Mr.  Atwood  raised  about  eight  thousand 
from  one-fourth  pound  of  seed.  The  variety  was 
Stone.  The  ground  was  plowed  seven  or  eight  inches 
deep,  harrowed,  cross-harrowed  and  marked  in  rows 
three  and  one-half  feet  apart.  He  set  just  an  acre, 
beginning  to  transplant  May  24  and  finishing  June  7, 
setting  the  plants  three  feet  apart  and  using  four 
thousand  one  hundred  and  thirty-six.  A  few  plants 
had  to  be  reset,  principally  on  account  of  cutworms. 


SUCCESS  WITH  SPECIALTIES 


219 


Theyounq-  plants  were  hoed  June  12,  and  the  weeds 
were  cut  out  with  a  hoe  on  June  19,  24  and  July  11. 
They  were  cultivated  June  14  and  22.  The  tomato 
worms  were  not  bad,  but  he  went  over  the  patch  and 
killed  one  hundred. 

Some  of  the  tomatoes  were  in  bloom  July  6,  and 
the  first  were  ripe  August  12.  Picking  began  for  the 
canning  factory  September  i,  and  until  September  28, 


PR  KIXC;  TOMAIOES 


when  there  was  a  severe  freeze,  were  sold  fourteen 
thousand  five  hundred  and  thirty  pounds  at  five 
dollars  per  ton,  eighteen  bushels  to  the  neighbors  at 
twenty-five  cents  per  bushel,  and  eight  bushels  were 
used  at  home.  At  the  time  of  the  freeze  there  were 
three  thousand  pounds  of  tomatoes  on  the  vines. 
Besides  the  above  there  were  sold  one  thousand  six 
hundred  plants  at  ten  cents  per  hundred,  making  a 
total    of    forty-four    dollars    and    forty-three    cents 


220  PRIZE   GARDENING 

received.  The  picking  cost  two  cents  per  crate  or 
seven  cents  per  ton.  The  cost  was  as  follows:  Pre- 
paring ground  and  planting  seed  two  dollars  and 
twenty-five  cents,  seed  thirty  cents,  transplanting  and 
resetting  three  dollars  and  five  cents,  cultivating 
five  dollars  and  fifty  cents,  harvesting  and  market- 
ing twelve  dollars  and  ninety-five  cents ;  total 
twenty-four  dollars  and  five  cents,  and  profits  twenty 
dollars  and  thirty-eight  cents. 

Southern  Tomato  Culture,  as  described  by  A. 
Klenke,  Palo  Pinto  county,  Texas,  presents  several 
points  of  difference :  My  way  is  to  plow  the  ground  a 
foot  deep  in  the  fall  of  the  year,  manure  richly  with 
barnyard  manure  and  some  wood  ashes,  then  plow  the 
ground  several  times  during  the  winter  to  prevent  it 
from,  becoming  compact. 

I  set  the  plants  three  feet  each  way.  I  find  frames 
not  profitable,  but  plant  close  enough  so  that  one  plant 
will  in  a  measure  support  another.  I  put  small  brush 
under  the  plants  to  prevent  fruit  from  touching  the 
ground.  A  few  times  gathering  will  make  regular 
places  for  the  feet  to  stand,  and  the  same  places  should 
be  used  every  time  when  gathering  tomatoes.  I  give 
deep  culture  as  often  as  possible  until  crowding  plants 
prevent  plowing. 

In  transplanting  during  a  dry  time,  I  have  had 
good  success  in  the  following  way :  First  of  all,  I  have 
holes  ready  to  receive  the  plants  before  taking  them 
out  of  the  seed  bed.  I  then  pinch  off  all  shoots  except 
the  very  top  leaves,  and  set  them  so  as  only  to  expose 
the  top  of  the  plants.  I  give  plenty  of  water,  rake 
some  dry  dirt  over  the  wet,  and  when  carefully  done 
no  shading  is  required,  and  in  a  few  days  the  plants 
will  be  several  inches  above  the  ground.  When  trans- 
planting in  the  usual  way  I  shade  plants  for  two  days 
by  placing  old  boards  or  shingles  around  them  to  keep 


SUCCESS  WITH  SPECIALTIES  221 

off  the  sun.  By  using  the  above  method  I  need  not 
w  ait  for  a  rainy  spell  to  transplant  tomato  plants. 

Plants  in  Boxes. — I  started  my  tomatoes  in  the 
kitchen  window  and  let  them  grow  there  until  ]\Iay  2, 
when  I  planted  them  out,  each  plant  in  a  strawberry 
box,  and  placed  them  in  the  cold  frame  with  my  cucum- 
bers. My  one  hundred  tomatoes  and  twenty-five  pep- 
pers I  set  out  after  1  got  the  water  on  the  hill,  June  19. 
They  were  good  strong  plants,  all  in  bloom,  and  the 
boxes  were  full  of  good  roots.  I  like  this  way  of  rais- 
ing, for  it  gives  plenty  of  room  and  makes  stocky 
plants.  It  does  not  disturb  the  roots  as  when  all  are  set 
in  one  box.  In  setting  I  cut  the  corners,  placed  the 
box  in  the  hill,  then  slipped  out  the  box,  put  the  soil 
around,  pressed  well,  using  water  the  same  as  for 
cucumbers.  Not  a  plant  wilted,  although  the  sun  was 
very  hot.  I  do  not  trellis,  although  I  think  it  would 
pay. —  [A.  E.  Ross,  Strafford  county,  Xew  Hampshire. 

Good  Tomatoes. — The  first  thing  to  do  is  to  buy 
a  package  of  Fordhook  Fancy  tomato  seed.  Quick 
germination  and  steady  growth  are  essential  to  a  good 
yield.  Sow  the  seed  in  rich  soil  from  March  i  to  20 
and  keep  warm  and  moist.  When  plants  are  two  inches 
high,  transplant  in  fresh  soil  four  inches  apart,  keep 
in  good  light  with  less  water;  transplant  the  second 
time,  and  when  the  weather  is  warm  and  fine,  plant  in 
the  open  field.  The  dwarf  varieties  need  richer  soil 
than  the  taller  kinds.  I  raise  the  Fordhook  in  this  way 
with  the  very  best  results.  I  sell  large  quantities  of 
these  plants,  put  in  boxes  six  by  eight,  twelve  plants 
in  each  box.  This  variety  gives  best  satisfaction  in 
this  section,  as  the  plants  look  well  when  young  and 
need  no  support;  the  fruit  is  beautiful. —  [Alfred 
Fuller,  Cattaraugus  county.  New  York. 

Onee  Transplanted  is  Enough  according  to  F.  R, 
Trask^  Worcester  county,  Massachusetts.     May  9,  set 


222  PRIZE     GARDENING 

out  fifteen  small  Spot  Cash  tomato  plants  in  open 
ground  direct  from  seed  boxes  sown  April  lo.  Other 
plants  were  transplanted  to  larger  boxes,  according  to 
usual  custom,  where  they  remained  until  May  30,  when 
they  were  set  in  open  ground.  These  plants  were  at 
this  time  larger  and  better  looking  than  those  set  in 
garden  May  9,  but  while  they  were  recovering  from 
the  shock  of  the  second  transplanting  the  first  quite 
caught  up  with  them  and  in  the  end  were  the  better 
plants.  Would  also  note  experiment  with  an  early 
tomato  sowed  in  open  ground  May  23,  not  transplanted 
at  all,  nor  very  well  cared  for,  but  it  bore  abundantly 
and  ripened  fruit  in  October.     I  have  concluded  that 


C 


k\  #/  %V^ 


MR.  EDGE'S  TOMATO  SUPPORT 

except  for  very  earliest  use,  it  is  best  to  transplant  toma- 
toes but  once,  direct  from  seed  box  to  open  ground, 
and  for  late  crop  the  seed  box  may  be  dispensed  with, 
sowing  in  hills  in  open  ground  any  time  in  May,  and 
thinning  to  one  plant  as  with  cabbages,  etc. 

A  Cheap  Tomato  Frame  is  described  by  Alfred  P. 
Edge,  Harford  county,  Maryland.  Each  frame  con- 
sists of  four  pieces  of  three  by  four  scantling  fastened 
together  at  the  top  with  a  wooden  pin  so  that  they  will 
open  and  close.  On  each  side  are  nailed  three  strips  of 
shingle  lath  about  fifteen  feet  long.  The  frames  stand 
about  four  feet  high  when  open,  and  by  stooping  one 
can  walk  the  whole  way  underneath.    The  frames  are 


SUCCESS  WITH  SPECIALTIES  221, 

set  between  two  rows  so  that  plants  from  each  side  are 
trained  up  and  over  them.  After  the  plants  are  nicely 
started,  Mr.  Edge  ties  them  to  the  lower  strip,  but  after 
that  they  are  held  by  the  slant  of  the  frame.  In  the  fall 
he  closes  the  frames  and  leans  them  against  the  fence 
out  of  the  way  until  wanted  another  year. 

Good  Melons. — A  grower  of  prime  melons  was 
L.  E.  Dimock,  Connecticut,  whose  luscious  products 
won  much  glory  at  county  fairs.  Six  hills  were  planted, 
May  17,  to  Iron  Clad  Melons,  and  six  to  Santiago. 
The  earth  was  excavated  to  the  depth  of  two  feet,  three 
feet  in  diameter,  and  filled  w^ith  decomposed  cow  and 
horse  manure,  with  a  liberal  supply  of  hen  manure, 
the  whole  being  mixed  thoroughly  with  the  soil.  The 
seeds  after  being  soaked  in  water  for  thirty-six  hours 
were  planted  in  each  hill  and  covered  two  inches  deep. 
A  box  two  feet  square,  twelve  inches  deep,  with  the 
top  and  bottom  taken  off,  was  placed  over  each  hill 
and  there  remained,  except  when  hoeing,  until  the 
plants  were  ready  to  send  out  vines,  then  it  was 
removed.  This  protects  the  plants  from  chilling  winds 
and  the  vines  grow  much  faster  than  otherwise.  Water- 
melons are  an  uncertain  crop  to  those  who  have  no 
experience  in  raising  them.  The  soil  must  be  of  a 
sandy  loam  and  if  the  proper  surface  can  be  utilized, 
and  a  southeast  slope  can  be  had,  it  is  one  great  factor 
in  melon  raising.  Two  vines  only  are  allowed  in  each 
hill  and  all  but  two  melons  are  picked  off  each  vine. 
The  ends  of  the  vines  are  pinched  off  after  the  melons 
have  set.  On  this  space  forty-eight  melons  weighed 
from  thirty  to  thirty-live  or  forty  pounds,  and  were  a 
beautiful  sight. 

C.  P.  Byiiii^tons  Melon  Crop  was  a  grand  success  ; 
early,  abundant  and  of  fine  quality.  Holes  w^ere  made 
in  the  soil  where  each  hill  was  to  be,  eight  inches  deep 
and    two    and    one-half    feet    in    diameter.     Coarse 


224 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


barnyard  manure  was  spread  evenly  over  the  bottom 
of  each  hole  to  a  depth  of  three  inches  and  covered 
with  an  inch  of  fine  soil,  on  top  of  which  was  placed 
two  shovelfuls  of  compost;  and  this  in  turn  covered 
with  three  inches  of  fine  sifted  soil,  thus  raising  the 
hill  level  with  the  surface.  The  seeds  were  then 
planted  by  hand  to  a  depth  of  one  and  one-half  to 
two  inches,  fifteen  or  twenty  seeds  to  the  hill,  placed 
germ  end  down,  and  covered  with  the  hand.  Each 
hill  was  then  sown  with  a  few  radish  seeds,  lightly 
covered,  and  the  soil  compacted.  The  hills  were 
made  eight  feet  apart  for  watermelons,  and  six  feet 
apart  for  muskmelons. 

Cultivation  was  begun  as  soon  as  the  plants  were 
up,  and  continued  every  other  day  until  August  i, 
working  as  close  to  the  hills  as  the  vines  would 
admit,  maintaining  a  fine  mulch  on  the  surface  to  save 
moisture.  As  soon  as  the  vines  reached  a  length  of 
three  feet,  the  ends  were  pinched  off  to  promote  the 
growth  of  laterals  and  fruit  close  to  the  hills.  The 
object  of  sowing  radish  seed  on  each  hill  was  for  the 
twofold  purpose  of  furnishing  a  succession  of  radishes 
and  to  protect  the  young  plants  from  the  ravages  of 
insects.  As  soon  as  the  plants  were  out  of  the  way  of 
insects,  the  radishes  which  had  not  already  been 
removed  for  table  use  were  pulled,  and  the  plants 
thinned  out,  leaving  three  of  the  most  thrifty  plants  to 
a  hill.  These  above  methods  apply  equally  well  to 
squashes  and  cucumbers. 

"  Whether  the  presence  of  the  radishes  in  the 
hills  had  any  protective  influence,  I  cannot  say ;  certain 
it  is,  however,  that  none  of  my  melons,  squashes  or 
cucumbers  were  troubled  in  tlie  least  with  insects,  and 
the  plan  is  not  without  value  as  it  furnishes  a  succession 
of  radishes  without  utilizing  extra  ground.  The  vines 
made  a  good  growth,  withstanding  the  severe  drouth 


SUCCESS      WITH      SPECIALTIES  225 

remarkably  well,  and  fruiting  abundantly,  both  water- 
melons and  muskmelons  being  available  for  the  table 
and  for  exhibition  at  the  county  fair  the  latter  part  of 
August,  and  they  were  constantly  available  thereafter 
until  October  2,  when  an  impending  frost  led  me  to 
pick  the  few  which  remained,  and  by  keeping  them  in  a 
cool  cellar,  these  were  available  until  used  up." 

Squashes  and  Cucumbers. — Methods  as  described 
for  these  were  much  the  same  as  for  melons.  In  regard 
to  the  summer  squash,  Dr.  W.  Y.  Fox,  Bristol  county, 
Massachusetts,  writes:  Two  plantings  of  Golden 
Summer  Crookneck  were  made,  one  on  May  5,  and  the 
other  July  3.  The  hills  were  filled  with  stable  manure 
and  irrigated  several  times.  The  striped  beetle  was 
kept  down  by  free  use  of  air-slaked  lime.  The  first 
squashes  were  cut  July  17,  and  the  last  October  i.  In 
all  we  had  two  hundred  squashes,  and  we  appreciate 
this  vegetable  as  much  as  any  we  raise,  for  it  is  impos- 
sible to  buy  them  in  the  market  that  are  fit  to  eat. 
We  want  them  cut  while  tender,  almost  as  soon  as 
the  blossom  falls  off  the  end,  while  the  truckmen  do 
not  cut  them  till  the  outer  skin  is  as  hard  as  Pharaoh's 
heart  and  we  must  cut  them  up  with  an  ax.  They  are 
also  much  better  when  just  picked  than  after  knock- 
ing around  for  three  or  four  days. 

Early  Cukes. — We  had  cucumbers  July  3^  notes 
Mrs.  D.  F.  M.,  Suffolk  county,  New  York,  the  preced- 
ing year  we  did  not  have  them  till  the  last  week  in  July. 
I  think  that  starting  them  in  hotbeds  makes  a  differ- 
ence of  nearly  three  weeks. 

A.  E.  Ross,  Strafford  county.  New  Hampshire, 
gives  further  particulars  about  the  early  cucumber 
crop:  I  planted  them  in  plum  boxes  eight  inches 
square  and  four  inches  deep.  I  filled  them  about  two- 
thirds  full  of  good  garden  soil,  then  put  in  the  seed.  I 
placed  them  in  a  cold  frame,  made  by  nailing  boards 


226  PRIZE     GARDENING 

together  like  a  box  without  top  or  bottom.  I  took  off 
my  double  windows  April  i8,  and  placed  them  on  top, 
thus  making  a  very  nice  place  to  grow  them.  After 
they  were  up  in  good  shape  I  thinned  to  four  good 
strong  plants.  After  the  third  leaf  was  well  grown  I 
filled  the  boxes  full  of  rich  soil,  thus  having  the  roots 
deep,  and  at  the  same  time  the  plants  were  well  sup- 
ported. June  19,  I  set  them  in  open  ground.  It  was 
so  dry  I  could  not  set  them  before.  I  put  in  a  ram  and 
got  water  on  the  hill,  June  16,  so  I  had  enough  to  keep 
them  well  watered.  I  dug  large,  deep  holes,  six  feet 
apart,  put  in  two  large  forkfuls  of  manure,  and  filled 
with  top  soil.  I  then  opened  the  hill  enough  to  admit 
the  box.  I  cut  the  corners,  flattened  it  out  and  left  it 
there.  I  took  a  pail  of  water,  poured  it  around  the  hill, 
then  filled  it  up  and  pressed  the  soil.  By  this  method 
I  did  not  lose  a  plant,  although  some  had  vines 
eighteen  inches  long  and  all  in  bloom. 

Celery  Was  a  Favorite  Crop,  both  for  first  and 
second  planting.  An  excellent  account  is  given  by 
C.  P.  Byington,  Greene  county.  New  York.  The  seed 
of  Golden  Self-Blanching  was  sown  June  i,  and  trans- 
planted twice  before  being  transferred  to  the  garden, 
July  15;  the  first  time,  when  the  first  leaves  were  well 
out,  about  three-fourths  of  an  inch  apart,  and  the 
second  time,  when  about  two  inches  high,  to  larger 
boxes  and  farther  apart.  When  transferred  to  the 
garden  the  plants  were  about  four  inches  high.  About 
one-third  of  the  top  and  roots  were  cut  off  with  the 
shears,  to  insure  a  compact,  stocky  growth.  A  trench 
was  dug  nine  inches  deep  and  fifteen  inches  wide,  into 
which  was  put  equal  parts  of  compost  and  soil,  five 
inches  deep,  and  the  plants  were  set  five  inches  apart. 

By  this  method  the  plants  are  started  several 
inches  below  the  surface,  thereby  obviating  the  neces- 
sity of  ridging  so  high,  combining  the  advantages  of  a 


SUCCESS     WITH      SPECIALTIES  22/ 

partial  trench  system  and  avoiding,  in  a  measure,  the 
danger  of  severe  drouth.  Cultivation  was  carried  on 
both  sides  of  the  trench  merely  to  keep  down  the  w^eeds 
and  save  moisture,  working  just"  enough  soil  in  the 
trenches  to  gradually  fill  them  as  the  plants  grew. 

The  cultivator  was  continued  every  other  day  until 
September  i,  wdien  the  first  ridging  was  done  by  going 
astride  the  row  w^ith  Planet  Jr  plows,  one  being  set 
each  side  the  row  to  turn  in.  This  operation  was 
repeated  September  15,  and  on  October  2,  boards  were 
set  up  edgewise,  about  one  foot  distant  from  the  rows 
on  each  side,  to  hold  the  bank  while  soil  was  shoveled 
against  the  plants.  The  tops  of  the  plants  w^ere  held 
together  during  this  operation  until  banked  up  to  the 
top  leaves. 

Notwithstanding  the  care  taken  it  seemed  certain 
the  crop  would  be  a  failure  from  lack  of  moisture. 
Owing  to  the  long-continued  drouth  the  water  supply 
was  barely  sufficient  for  actual  needs.  The  expedient 
was  hit  upon  of  saving  all  the  wash  w^ater  and  slops 
from  the  house  in  barrels.  Mr.  Byington  was  thus 
enabled  to  water  the  plants  thoroughly  two  or  three 
times  a  week,  always  after  sundown.  While  entailing 
a  little  extra  labor,  it  was  paid  for  in  the  Ciuality  and 
quantity  of  the  product.  The  crop  was  gathered  No- 
vember 2,  and  packed  in  boxes  one  foot  deep,  by 
placing  the  bunches  close  together  one  way,  and  one 
foot  apart  the  other,  covering  the  roots  well  with  dry 
soil  from  the  garden.  The  boxes  were  then  put  away 
in  a  cool,  well-ventilated  cellar. 

Banking  and  Bleaching  is  thus  described  by  Fred 
W.  Kilbourne  of  New  Jersey :  The  Golden  Self- 
Blanching  celery  grows  upright  and  we  didn't- touch  it 
with  our  hands  in  banking.  We  first  loosened  the  soil 
with  the  plow^  threw  the  dirt  as  high  as  possible,  then 
a  few  days  later  finished  with  a  shovel.     We  banked 


228  PRIZE     GARDENING 

three  rows  at  a  time,  then  a  week  later  three  more,  and 
thus  had  a  succession.  It  needs  to  be  sold  as  soon  as 
bleached,  or  it  will  rust  and  decay.  We  commenced 
selling  about  October  ii,  and  sold  about  one  row  a 
week.  On  November  lo  and  ii,  put  all  the  celery  left 
unsold  into  the  cellar,  packing  the  bleached  in  a  wide 
bed  as  close  together  as  it  could  be  packed. 

The  unbleached  we  packed  in  beds  about  three 
feet  wide  and  eighteen  feet  long,  with  a  little  sand  on 
the  roots.  We  used  ten-inch  hemlock  boards  for  the 
sides.  This  celery  will  need  watering  about  twice, 
for  which  I  have  a  funnel  made  with  a  mouth  about  a 
foot  wide,  and  a  long  spout,  so  that  the  water  can  be 
poured  in  and  carried  to  the  roots  without  wetting  the 
foliage.  We  keep  the  cellar  open  night  and  day  as 
long  as  it  is  safe,  only  closing  at  the  approach  of  severe 
weather.  I  expect  to  have  all  celery  sold,  or  in  condi- 
tion to  sell,  by  New  Year's. 

A  Northwestern  Celery  Grozver  of  experience,  A. 
Brackett,  Hennepin  county,  Minnesota,  detailed  fully 
his  very  successful  methods :  Celery  seed  was  planted 
in  drills  eighteen  inches  apart,  on  moist,  rich  soil,  on 
lake  margin.  The  seedbed  should  be  made  very 
rich  and  the  celery  planted  as  soon  as  the  ground  can 
be  worked  in  the  spring.  It  should  be  kept  thoroughly 
hoed  and  free  from  weeds.  The  plants  should  be  large 
enough  to  plant  any  time  between  June  20  and  July  10. 
The  more  comjDact  the  ground  the  more  compact  will 
be  the  celery.  Celery  grown  on  loose  ground  is  apt  to 
be  pithy  and  spongy. 

The  field  in  which  we  planted  celery  was  plowed 
early  in  the  spring,  and  kept  thoroughly  cultivated 
until  the  time  of  planting.  With  a  marker  we  marked 
off  rows  five  feet  apart  and  ran  a  celery  hiller  through 
the  rows,  throwing  the  dirt  each  way,  and  leaving  the 
rows  about  six  inches  deep.     One  load  of  completely 


SUCCESS  WITH  SPECIALTIES  229 

rotted  cow  or  sheep  manure  was  scattered  in  about 
four  hundred  feet  of  row.  With  a  narrow-toothed  cul- 
tivator we  worked  the  soil  and  manure  together.  Just 
before  planting  we  took  the  plants  up,  trimmed  off  the 
tops  and  roots^  leaving  a  stub  of  about  three  inches. 

We  planted  with  a  dibber,  and,  the  field  being  on 
the  lake  shore,  watered  all  the  rows  before  planting, 
as  the  weather  was  very  dry.  We  kept  all  the  weeds 
hoed  out,  and  when  the  plants  were  well  rooted  we 
cultivated  at  least  once  a  week.  We  commenced 
crowding  up  earth  to  the  celery  September  i,  and  then 
only  to  keep  the  plants  upright.  We  have  found  that 
celery  banked  in  hot  weather  is  subject  to  rust.  We 
commenced  banking  about  September  20,  continuing 
the  operation  every  few  days  until  the  celery  was  hilled 
to  the  top. 

It  is  safe  to  leave  celery  in  the  field  in  this  latitude 
until  November  i,  when  it  should  be  taken  up  and  put 
in  trenches. 

We  hold  our  celery  in  the  trenches  for  the  holi- 
day trade.  We  select  a  central  position  in  the  field 
where  the  celery  is  raised,  take  up  and  lay  over  a  few 
rows,  and  with  the  large  string  plow  work  as  deep  as 
possible,  a  strip  of  ground  eight  feet  wide  and  any 
length  desirable.  With  a  spade  we  dig  a  ditch  in  the 
center  of  the  eight-foot  strip,  deep  enough  to  allow  the 
tops  of  the  celery  to  come  even  with  the  surface.  Have 
the  celery  piled  along  the  trench  within  reach  of  the 
man  who  is  to  place  in  the  trench,  two  stalks  side  by 
side,  pressing  enough  dirt  around  the  roots  to  hold  in 
position.  Leave  a  space  of  eight  inches,  digging  a  new 
trench,  using  the  earth  removed  to  fill  up  around  the 
celery  in  the  first  row,  and  so  on  until  the  strip  is  filled. 
Let  it  stand  in  this  shape  until  there  is  danger  of  freez- 
ing. Then  cover  with  six  inches  of  dirt  and  allow  this 
layer  to  freeze  nearly  through  to  the  celery,  then  cover 


230  PRIZE     GARDENING 

with  strawy  manure,  which  will  prevent  frost  working 
any  farther. 

Celery  buried  in  this  manner  is  sure  to  keep 
until  spring.  Thirty-six  square  rods,  planted  according 
to  the  above,  cost  in  labor  and  rent  of  ground,  fifty 
dollars  and  ninety-five  cents.  Proceeds  of  sales  were 
ninety-five  dollars,  leaving  a  profit  of  forty-five  dollars 
and  five  cents. 

Blanching  Celery  with  Leaf  Mold. — C.  Gross, 
Morgan  county,  Missouri,  took  two  boards  the  length 
of  the  row  and  one  foot  wide,  and  placed  them  six 
inches  distant  from  the  plants,  one  on  each  side  of  the 
row,  keeping  them  in  place  by  small  stakes.  He  next 
fitted  a  small  board  at  each  end,  which  was  also  held  in 
place  by  stakes,  or  they  might  be  lightly  nailed  together, 
forming  a  box.  He  now  filled  the  space  between  the 
boards  around  the  celery  with  leaf  mold,  straightening 
up  the  celery  leaves  while  filling  in.  Water  was  then 
applied  until  the  leaf  mold  was  all  moistened  through. 
As  it  settled  down  more  was  put  in  and  watered  until 
the  box  was  full  of  moist  leaf  mold.  The  celery  Mr. 
Gross  found  to  be  perfectly  and  quickly  blanched  in 
this  manner. 

Celery  in  Cellar. — November  8,  W.  McDermott, 
Saratoga  county,  New  York,  gathered  his  celery, 
placed  it  right  side  up  as  carefully  as  possible,  in  a  box 
in  the  cellar,  and  kept  the  tops  sprinkled  with  water 
say  once  in  two  weeks.  He  keeps  celery  crisp  and 
tender  nearly  all  winter  in  this  way. 

Peas. — A  good  crop  was  grown  in  a  dry,  hot 
season,  by  the  thorough  methods  which  C.  P.  Byington 
describes.  With  wheel  plows,  furrows  were  made 
three  and  one-half  feet  apart  and  five  to  six  inches 
deep,  by  plowing  twice  in  the  same  furrow.  The  peas 
were  then  drilled  in  by  hand,  using  one  quart  of  seed 
to  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet  of  drill,  and  covered  by 


SUCCESS    WITH    SPFXIALTIES  2^1 

reversing  plows  to  turn  in,  running  through  each 
furrow  and  covering  the  peas  two  to  three  inches, 
walking  on  the  covered  rows  behind  the  plow  to  firm 
and  compact  the  soil  about  the  seed,  and  to  retain 
moisture.  The  rows  were  made  three  and  one-half  feet 
apart,  that  early  sweet  corn  might  be  planted  between 
every  other  two  rows  of  peas,  leaving  a  clear  space 
between  each  two  rows  of  peas  to  facilitate  picking. 
After  the  peas  were  planted  and  covered,  the  rows 
appeared  as  a  shallow  trench,  about  eight  inches  wide 
and  three  inches  deep,  which  as  the  peas  grew,  was 
gradually  filled  level  by  cultivation.  By  this  method 
the  peas  w^ere  started  at  a  depth  not  so  prone  to  be 
affected  by  surface  conditions,  and  the  better  enabled 
thereby  to  resist  drouth. 

Cultivation  was  begun  as  soon  as  the  peas  were 
up,  by  going  through  the  rows  with  cultivators,  follow- 
ing the  cultivators  with  the  rake  attachments  at  the 
first  cultivation,  and  subsequently  once  a  week  there- 
after, or  after  every  third  cultivation.  The  crop  w^as 
cultivated  three  times  a  week  until  in  full  bloom, 
keeping  the  soil  constantly  stirred  to  a  sufficient  depth, 
smooth  and  free  from  weeds. 

The  climatic  conditions  which  prevailed  were  not 
conducive  to  the  best  results,  but  the  grower  had  peas 
to  eat  while  neighbors  w^ith  larger  area  planted  and 
better  soil,  reported  an  almost  complete  failure,  having 
been  obliged,  many  of  them,  to  buy  peas  for  family  use, 
the  severe  drouth  from  early  in  spring  lasting  through- 
out the  entire  growing  and  bearing  period  of  the  crop. 

The  first  crop,  planted  April  15,  while  the  ground 
w^as  cool,  and  not  so  susceptible  to  dry  weather, 
obtained  a  good  start  and  was  not  so  perceptibly  affected 
by  the  drouth,  giving  a  fair  yield,  twice  as  much  for 
the  area  planted  as  the  later  plantings. 


232  PRIZE    GARDENING 

Large,  Well-Filled  Corn, — L.  E.  Dimock  of  Con- 
necticut tells  how  his  premium  corn  was  grown,  as 
follows :  May  29,  he  prepared  two  rows  three  feet 
apart,  with  spaces  eighteen  inches  apart,  and  placed  six 
kernels  around  the  center,  six  inches  apart.  The  seed 
was  soaked  in  warm  water  thirty-six  hours,  and  rolled 
in  coal  tar  and  then  in  land  plaster.  The  tar  prevented 
the  crows  and  blackbirds  from  pulling  it  up.  The 
plaster  prevented  the  corn  adhering  together.  This 
method  was  far  superior  to  the  old-fashioned  scare- 
crow. When  crows  got  one  mouthful  it  proved  a  great 
plenty  for  the  whole  season.  Many  fields  have  been 
ruined  by  crows  that  gave  the  scarecrows  no  attention. 
The  plants  at  intervals  are  thinned  to  four  in  a  hill. 
Deep  planting  gave  an  opportunity  for  level  culture, 
and  hen  manure  spread  broadcast  with  stable  manure 
deep  down  in  the  earth  caused  the  roots  to  run  deep 
and  no  ill  effect  was  experienced  from  dry  weather. 
The  suckers  were  taken  off  the  same  as  in  tobacco 
raising,  which  caused  the  whole  strength  to  enter  the 
ears,  and  much  larger  and  well-filled  ears  were  the 
result. 

Field  corn  matured  much  better  to  cut  the  stalks 
near  the  ear  when  the  corn  is  in  the  milk.  This  method 
gave  excellent  fodder  and  much  better  ears.  By  the 
common  way  of  cutting  up  and  setting  in  stacks,  much 
of  the  corn  becomes  moldy  and  damaged  in  a  wet 
season.  By  this  method  Mr.  Dimock  found  no  injury 
occurred  to  fodder  or  ears. 

Make  Several  Plantings. — We  are  very  fond  of 
sugar  corn,  observes  E.  G.  Packard,  Kent  county, 
Delaware,  and  by  using  several  varieties  and  successive 
plantings  a  few  days  apart,  I  secured  a  steady  and 
abundant  supply  from  July  14  to  October  i,  and  of 
tomatoes  from  June  28  to  October  10.     Also  of  lima 


SUCCESS  WITH  SPECIALTIES  233 

beans  from  July  21  to  October  2,  when  our  first  killing 
frost  occurred. 

Second  Gronjth  Cabbage. — Growers  are  advised  by 
Mrs.  McDonald,  Suffolk  county,  New  York,  to  cut  the 
cabbage  head,  leaving  the  stalk  without  any  large 
leaves,  and  cabbage  cut  during  July  and  August  would 
have  four  small  heads  on  each  stalk  in  September  and 
October.  These  were  nice  cooked,  but  were  especially 
good  for  hens. 

L.  E.  Di mock's  Cabbage. — The  seeds  were  soaked 
in  warm  water  thirty-six  hours.  A  coating  of  hen 
manure  was  spread  broadcast  and  a  thin  mulch  of 
swale  grass  was  spread  over  the  surface.  By  this 
treatment  in  five  days  the  plants  began  to  push  through 
the  earth,  the  mulch  was  removed.  Often  stirring  the 
soil  and  thinning  to  an  inch  apart,  gave  hardy  stock 
plants  that,  when  transplanted,  lost  no  time  in  develop- 
ing. When  taking  up  plants  for  transplanting,  a 
manure  fork  is  used.  As  much  earth  as  possible  is 
taken  up  with  the  plants  and  placed  in  a  shallow  box, 
after  which  they  are  given  a  thorough  wetting. 
This  causes  the  earth  to  cling  to  the  roots,  and 
plants  thus  treated  can  be  transplanted  in  the 
heat  of  the  day  and  take  no  hurt.  Plants  trans- 
planted July  8,  in  just  four  weeks  measured  across 
the  leaves  three  by  four  inches ;  four  thousand  of 
these  kind  of  plants  were  set  in  the  field  July  6,  and 
gave  a  field  of  cabbages  much  to  be  admired.  Cabbage 
sown  in  beds  broadcast,  when  transplanted  are  weak, 
puny  things,  often  not  having  strength  to  stand  alone, 
and  may  yield  to  the  elements  and  leave  their  place 
vacant.  Cabbage  are  vigorous  growers  when  rightly 
treated.  Mr.  Dimock's  method  is  to  use  new  sward 
ground  and  thus  no  weeds  nor  club  root.  To  destroy 
the  little  green  worm  that  eats  the  heads,  salt,  with  a 
little  saltpeter,  mixed  together  and  sprinkled  on  the 


234  PRIZE     GARDENING 

heads,  caused  the  worms  to  depart  and  the  cabbage  to 
head  soHd. 

Spinach  wants  very  Httle  covering,  according  to 
F.  W.  Kilbourne,  New  Jersey.  The  seed  is  large  in 
proportion  to  the  sprout  that  has  to  push  it  up.  If  it  is 
planted  deep  and  the  ground  crusts,  it  has  trouble  in 
getting  through. 

''On  November  20,  the  plants  on  my  piece 
averaged  about  five  inches  across.  With  the  beginning 
of  winter  I  top-dress  my  spinach  with  short  horse 
manure,  about  ten  tons  to  the  acre.  It  cuts  at  the  rate  of 
five  hundred  bushels  to  the  acre.  We  begin  cutting 
early  in  the  spring,  cutting  out  the  biggest  and  then 
cultivating.  The  cultivating  and  the  nitrate  of  soda, 
four  hundred  pounds  to  the  acre,  forces  it." 

Egg  Plc'ts. — Potato  bugs  destroyed  all  the  egg 
plants  grown  around  Mr.  Kilbourne's  place.  ''But  I 
saved  mine,"  he  says,  "by  giving  them  a  heavy  dose 
of  bordeaux  mixture.  I  noticed  one  time  when  using  it 
for  blight  that  the  bugs  did  not  admire  the  taste,  and 
so  I  sprayed  with  a  small  sprayer  that  I  use  in  the 
greenhouse,  and  it  was  pleasant  to  watch  them  march 
off  the  plants.  Six  plants  that  I  left  unprotected  as 
an  object  lesson  were  completely  destroyed.  Antici- 
pating a  frost,  we  had  cut  all  the  large  tgg  plants, 
covered  each  fruit  with  a  sheet  of  newspaper  to 
keep  them  from  the  air  and  to  prevent  bruising,  and 
stowed  them  away  in  the  barn.  We  gathered  in  this 
way  seven  hundred  fruit  that  sold  at  five  cents  apiece. 
The  day  after  the  frost  we  cut  three  hundred  smaller 
ones,  but  they  did  not  keep  as  well." 

C  P.  Byington's  Egg  Plant. — Seed  was  sown  in 
shallow  boxes  in  the  house,  March  7,  and  germination 
and  growth  encouraged  by  keeping  the  soil  well 
moistened  with  lukewarm  water,  and  the  box  in  a 
warm,  sunny  window.     The  method  of  transplanting 


SUCCESS  WITH  SPECIALTIES  235 

and  transferring  to  the  garden  was  the  same  as  for 
tomatoes.  Cultivation  was  done  regularly  every  other 
day,  and  maintained  as  long  as  possible  without  injury 
to  the  plants.  When  in  blossom,  early  in  June,  a  few 
potato  bugs  found  them.  These  were  picked  oft',  and 
subsequently  for  a  week  the  plants  were  looked  over 
carefully  every  day  and  every  bug  destroyed ;  the  under 
side  of  the  leaves  was  likewise  examined  for  eggs 
and  these  also  destroyed.  No  more  trouble  was 
experienced  until  the  latter  part  of  August,  when,  cul- 
tivation having  been  discontinued,  the  plants  were 
neglected  somewhat,  and  they  were  discovered  to  be 
literally  covered  with  newly  hatched  bugs.  These  were 
at  once  brushed  off  into  a  pan  and  boiling  water  thrown 
over  them.  This  operation  was  repeated  every  morn- 
ing for  a  week,  when  they  were  again  free  of  both  bugs 
and  eggs.  The  first  fruit  was  available  for  table  use 
August  12,  and  constantly  thereafter  until  October  2, 
when  the  few  remaining  fruits  of  good  quality  were 
picked  off  and  kept  in  a  cool  place  till  used. 

One  IV 01U ail's  IV ay. — I  have  used  pans  green 
for  cucumber  bugs,  writes  Alyra  O.  Peck,  Ontario 
county,  New  York,  but  I  like  creosote  better.  To  keep 
them,  bearing  it  is  necessary  to  be  careful  in  picking, 
and  not  step  on  the  vines,  neither  break  a  curl.  I  did 
not  put  water  on  mine  this  year  to  keep  them  bearing, 
I  hoed  the  dirt  up  so  deep  around  them  it  is  a  wonder 
they  lived  at  all,  for  we  had  no  rain  until  too  late  to 
benefit  the  garden  any. 

My  method  in  raising  parsnips  is  to  keep  the  soil 
soft  and  hoed  very  deep.  I  thin  them  to  about  six 
inches  apart.  I  also  keep  close  watch  for  caraway 
worms ;  my  only  remedy  is  to  pick  them  off  and  kill 
them.     They  also  bother  celery. 

Tn  growing  peppers,  I  set  the  plants  about  eigh- 
teen inches  apart.    After  they  get  a  good  start,  I  go  to 


236  PRIZE     GARDENING 

the  hencoop,  get  some  compost,  and  hoe  a  little  around 
each  plant.  I  hoe  very  deep  but  not  too  close  to  them. 
I  draw  the  dirt  up  around  them,  as  they  like  deep  soft 
earth.  I  have  had  some  very  large  fruit  of  very 
fine  quality. 

For  beets  and  turnips,  I  follow  the  same  method  as 
in  raising  onions,  beets  .are  rather  small  owing  to 
extreme  dry  weather.  Some  turnips  weighed  from 
four  to  five  pounds. 

Spring  Lettuce. — Seed  was  planted  by  A. 
Brackett,  Hennepin  county,  Minnesota,  the  first  week 
in  March,  in  the  greenhouse,  and  transplanted  in  rows 
three  or  four  inches  apart  and  one  inch  apart  in  the 
rows,  then  three  weeks  later  transplanted  again  six 
inches  apart  each  way.  If  watered  and  kept  at  the 
proper  temperature,  they  will  be  ready  for  market 
in  three  or  four  weeks.  Price  there  runs  from  twenty- 
five  to  thirty  cents  per  dozen.  His  proceeds  were 
forty-three  dollars  and  eighty-three  cents.  Expenses, 
ten  dollars  and  ten  cents. 

Grozving  Lettuce. — Three  varieties  of  lettuce  were 
planted  by  C.  P.  Byington,  Greene  county.  New  York. 
Iceberg  was  sown  April  21,  Cream  Butter  May  i,  and 
Tyrol  May  25.  The  seed  was  sown  quite  thickly  in 
drills  one  foot  apart,  thinning  out  young  plants  to  two 
or  three  inches  apart.  In  a  week  or  two  these  made 
nice,  bunchy  plants  which  were  thinned  as  needed  for 
the  table,  to  about  one  foot  apart,  and  left  to  head.  The 
first  tender  leaves  were  available  for  the  table  twenty- 
eight  days  from  seed,  and  the  crop  continued  until 
the  middle  of  July.  Elegant  heads  of  Iceberg  were 
ready  for  the  table  the  last  of  June.  They  were  crisp, 
brittle  and  tender,  and  this  is  a  fine  variety  in  all  stages. 
The  other  two  varieties  were  tender  when  young,  but 
did  not  head  nicely  or  stand  the  drouth  as  well  as 
Iceberg. 


SUCCESS  WITH  SPECIALTIES 


^Z7 


Plan  for  a  Fezv  Herbs, — Every  gardener,  as 
advised  by  George  Osborne  of  Illinois,  should  have  a 
plot  for  herbs,  such  as  sage,  dill,  etc.  As  these  are 
mostly  perennials  they  should  be  planted  where  they 
will  not  interfere  with  the  plowing  of  the  garden. 

Starting  Ginseng. — This  unusual  specialty,  which 
is  attracting  increased  attention  because  of  the  high 
prices  quoted  for  the  prepared  roots,  is  briefly  alluded 
to  by  John  Frazer,  Washington  county,  New  York. 

Early  in  September  three  plots  were  chosen  for 
planting  ginseng.  The  plots  were  plowed  and  all  stones 
and  other  obstructions  forked  out  to  the  depth  of  one 
foot.  Three  barrels  of  fine,  well-rotted  manure  were 
applied  to  each  square  rod  of  ground,  well  raked  and 
mixed  in  to  a  depth  of  three  inches.  The  ground  was 
made  very  mellow  and  in  fine  condition.  Each  plot  was 
divided  in  beds  five  feet  wide,  by  placing  six-inch 
boards  on  edge,  held  in  place  by  stakes  driven  into 
the  ground.  A  walk  of  fifteen  inches  was  between 
the  beds. 


CHAPTER   XVI 

PRIZE  FLOWERS  AND  FRUIT 

The  flower  bed  was  an  important  annex  to  many 
family  gardens  in  the  contest,  yet  the  floral  portion  of 
the  garden  received  comparatively  little  attention  in 
the  majority  of  accounts.  Although  many  expressed 
admiration  and  appreciation  of  flower  products,  the 
majority  were  contented  with  the  simplest  methods  of 
growing  them,  as  described  in  the  various  accounts  in 
other  chapters. 

Those  who  took  special  pride  in  the  aesthetic  side 
of  gardening  and  with  the  same  care  and  skill  that  they 
would  employ  with  the  money  crops,  prepared  and 
cultivated  their  plots  of  seedlings,  using  choice  seed, 
forcing  with  hotbeds  and  high  culture,  produced  results 
which  caused  many  a  country  estate  to  resemble  a 
choice  section  of  the  garden  of  Eden.  The  grounds 
of  a  New  York  state  gardener,  R.  N.  Lewis,  were  at 
first  comparatively  bare  and  unattractive,  but  when 
the  skillfully  managed  flower  beds  were  in  full  bloom,  a 
scene  of  beauty  appeared  of  which  a  faint  idea  may  be 
obtained  from  the  accompanying  picture. 

One  of  the  few  who  made  anything  like  a  specialty 
of  flowering  plants  was  B.  S.  Higley  of  Ohio,  the  first 
regular  prize  winner.  His  very  thorough  and  success- 
ful methods  for  sweet  peas,  begonias  and  dahlias  are 
given  nearly  in  full : 

Sweet  Peas. — When  the  peas  are  ready  to  climb, 
I  prepare  a  trellis  in  this  way:  The  end  posts  were 
well  braced  when  set.  I  nail  to  each  post,  crosswise  of 
the  rows,  three  pieces  of  two  by  four-inch  pine,  twelve 


240  PRIZE     GARDENING 

inches  long,  one  about  eight  inches  from  the  ground, 
one  midway  of  the  post,  and  one  at  the  top.  By  the 
use  of  nails  and  staples  stretch  three  wires  on  each  side 
as  taut  as  possible  and  fasten  them  to  the  ends  of  the 
crosspieces.  Thus  I  have  three  wires  on  each  side  of 
the  row,  about  ten  inches  apart  horizontally,  and  three 
feet  up  and  down.  I  buy  white  binding  twine,  rather 
coarse,  by  the  dozen  balls.  Begin  at  one  end  of  the 
row  and  tie  the  twine  to  the  top  wire  close  to  the  post, 
then  go  down  to  the  second  wire  on  the  same  side,  wind 
the  twine  twice  around  and  knot  at  a  distance  of  nine 
inches  from  the  post.  Then  go  down  to  the  bottom  wire 
and  fasten  the  twine  eighteen  inches  from  the  post. 
Come  up  to  the  middle  wire  and  tie  at  a  distance  of 
twenty-seven  inches  from  the  post,  and  to  the  top  wire 
at  a  distance  of  three  feet.  Thus  I  continue  slanting 
forward  down  and  up  to  the  end  of  the  row,  when  I 
return  in  precisely  the  same  way,  except  that  I  tie  the 
twine  midway  between  the  knots  on  the  top  and  bottom 
wires  and  cross  at  the  knots  on  the  middle  wire,  tying 
there  exactly  over  the  former  knot.  This  makes  a 
cheap  but  very  serviceable  trellis. 

Buy  good  galvanized  iron,  not  steel,  wire,  store  it 
away  in  the  fall  and  it  will  last  for  years.  This  trellis 
is  easily  cleaned  away  in  the  autumn,  in  which  respect 
it  differs  totally  from  poultry  netting.  It  is  only 
necessary  to  run  a  sharp  knife  along  the  wires  and  cut 
the  twine,  when  all  the  dead  vines  can  be  pulled  off  and 
carried  to  the  refuse  pile. 

Tuberous  Begonias. — Early  in  March  the  tubers 
are  potted  in  four-inch  pots,  with  potting  soil  made  of 
one-third  sharp  sand  and  two-thirds  well-rotted  sods 
and  manure.  Care  must  be  taken  to  plant  the  bulbs 
right  side  up.  I  generally  cover  them  about  one-fourth 
of  an  inch  and  firm  the  soil  around  them  compactly. 
The  top  of  the  soil  should  be  nearly  an  inch  below  the 


PRIZE  FLOWERS  AND  FRUIT  24I 

top  of  the  pot.  As  soon  as  planted,  they  are  thorous^^hly 
watered  and  placed  on  a  plant  frame  in  a  room  where  a 
fire  is  kept  up  night  and  day,  the  stand  being  in  the 
darkest  part  of  the  room.  About  twice  a  week  water  is 
poured  in  so  as  nearly  to  fill  the  pots.  In  about  a 
month  the  shoots  appear,  and  in  six  weeks  the  pots  are 
removed  to  another  room,  where  the  temperature  is 
kept  about  fifty  degrees.  The  pots  are  so  placed  that 
they  will  get  the  morning  sun.  Here  they  remain  until 
the  time  for  planting  out.  They  are  watered  as  before, 
and  turned  from  time  to  time,  since  the  plants  will  lean 
toward  the  sun.  Starting  in  pots  assures  strong  plants 
and  early  bloom. 

A  few  bulbs  generally  fail  to  start,  so  I  buy  half  a 
dozen  each  year.  About  the  middle  of  May  the  plants 
will  range  in  hight  from  one  and  one-half  to  eight 
inches.  I  then  plant  them  in  rows  eighteen  inches  apart 
and  one  foot  in  a  row.  The  pots  are  given  a  thorough 
watering  a  few  hours  previous  to  transplanting.  With 
a  garden  trowel  a  hole  is  dug  six  inches  in  diameter 
and  six  to  eight  inches  deep.  The  plants  are  removed 
carefully  from  the  pots  and  set  at  the  same  depth  as 
before.  P'ill  the  hole  nearly  full  with  soil,  water  liber- 
ally, cover  the  wet  soil  with  dry  earth  and  firm 
compactly. 

Dahlias. — Last  fall  my  dahlias,  after  the  frost  had 
killed  the  tops,  had  their  stalks  cut  off  about  five  inches 
above  the  ground.  I  cut  the  soil  all  around  the  plant 
with  a  spade,  to  the  depth  of  a  foot  or  more,  taking 
care  to  keep  not  less  than  a  foot  away  from  the  center 
of  the  plants.  Then  using  the  spade  still,  the  plants 
were  carefully  lifted,  taking  care  not  to  break  off  any 
of  the  attached  tubers.  I  took  considerable  soil  with  the 
clump  and  removed  carefully  to  a  storeroom  where  they 
would  not  freeze,  and  permitted  them  to  dry  out  for 
several  days,  when  they  were  removed  to  a  frost-proof 


242 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


cellar  and  stored  side  by  side  in  shoe  boxes.  I  never 
cover  them  at  all,  unless  unusually  cold,  when  I  throw 
old  bags  over  them.  If  the  cellar  is  very  dry  it  would 
be  necessary  to  fill  the  boxes  with  dry  sand  to  preserve 
the  vitality  of  the  tubers.  When  the  time  comes  to 
plant,  which  is  corn-planting  time,  handle  the  roots 
with  extreme  care  so  as  to  break  off  no  tubers.  Dig 
holes  large  enoug  to  hold  the  whole  clump,  plant 
and  cover. 

The  Water  Lily  Pond. — The  artificial  water  lily 
pond  is  found  to-day  hidden  under  spreading  boughs 
or  in  some  shaded  nook,  silently  nestling  in  a  remote 
corner  of  many  of  our  city  lawns ;  thriving  equally  as 
well,  and  perhaps  better  than  at  the  country  homes, 
where  facilities  for  water  and  drainage  are  not  so 
complete.  The  pond  may  be  made  about  ten  feet 
long  by  six  feet  wide,  sunk  into  the  greensward  in 
a  spot  overhung  with  trees.  The  excavation,  varying 
fom  five  to  eight  inches  deep  (so  as  not  to  be  quite 
level),  is  well  cemented  and  piped  into  the  drain, 
enough  soil  being  allowed  to  cover  the  roots  of  the 
plants.  The  water  pipe  is  so  arranged  that  fresh  water 
can  be  used  when  required. 

Plenty  of  animal  life  keeps  the  plants  healthy  and 
the  water  from  becoming  stagnant.  Numerous  tad- 
poles, frogs,  toads,  a  few  goldfish  and  perch  are  useful 
inhabitants  of  the  picturesque  pond.  The  tall  cat-tails 
vie  with  the  Japanese  iris,  reflecting  its  own  purple, 
yellow  and  white  radiance  in  the  watery  mirror  beneath. 
At  the  extreme  end  of  the  pond  may  be  planted  the 
root  of  an  Egyptian  water  lily  (Nymphaea  lotus), 
the  rose  and  favorite  flower  of  ancient  Egypt.  It 
thrives  in  stagnant  or  slowly  running  water,  and  as 
each  day  it  grows  in  beauty  and  ornamentation,  it 
reveals  but  little  of  the  life-sustaining  properties  imbed- 
ded in  its  roots,  which  are  meat  and  substance  to  the 


PRIZE    FLOWERS    AND    FRUIT 


243 


people  in  the  ]\Ienzaleh  lake  district  and  to  many  living 
along  the  Nile  and  on  the  shores  of  the  adjacent 
rivulets. 

Kissing  the  sunbeams  at  the  feet  of  the  iris  and 
cat-tails  are  the  floating  leaves  of  the  water  lilies, 
spreading  their  broad,  flat  surface  on  the  quiet  water 
with  a  scrupulous  regard  of  ownership  in  this  lily  pond. 
Between  the  leaves  here  and  there  peeps  a  bud,  as  if 


TEACH  TREES  IN  A.\  ARKANSAS  GARDEN 

ashamed  of  its  own  boldness,  which  by  to-morrow  will 
gain  courage  and  unfold  its  beautiful  wax-like  petals 
to  be  nursed  into  full  bloom  beneath  the  sheltered  rays 
of  the  warm  sunlight.  The  lily  pond,  a  fresh  and 
cooling  oasis,  even  in  a  garden  of  rare  flowers,  will  give 
the  most  satisfaction  for  the  least  amount  of  labor  of 
any  gardening  that  can  be  undertaken.     In  the  fall  a 


244 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


thick  coverlet  of  leaves  keeps  the  plants  and  animal  life 
intact  until  called  from  their  dormant  state  by  the  first 
songs  of  spring. 

Fruit  trees  in  the  garden  often  added  materially 
to  the  profit  side  of  the  account.     In  other  cases,  how- 


PIIOLIFIC   CURRANTS 


ever,  they  were  considered  a  decided  drawback  to  the 
general  success  of  the  garden.  Several  contestants 
insist  that  a  highly  successful  garden  must  be  wholly 
free  from  shade  of  any  kind.  In  the  irrigated  gardens 
where  the  vast  amount  of  water  taken  up  by  the  tree 


TRIZE  FLOWERS  AND  FRUIT  245 

roots  can  be  artificially  replaced,  trees  and  vegetables 
seem  to  get  along  better  together  than  under  ordinary 
conditions.  The  illustration  shows  the  thrifty  growth 
of  peach  trees  in  an  Arkansas  garden. 

Small  fruits,  especially  strawberries  and  currants, 
were  frequently  a  part  of  the  prize  gardens,  and  the 
description  has  been  given  with  the  rest  of  the  account. 

A  Minnesota  Grozccr. — Five  years  ago,  writes 
John  Tye  of  Minnesota,  I  trfed  an  experiment  of  laying 
down  my  blackberry  and  raspberry  canes  by  bending 
them  over  and  covering  them  with  straw  or  coarse 
litter,  but  when  spring  came  the  mice  had  killed  all 
the  canes,  by  eating  the  bark  off  around  the  bottom. 
In  August  I  cut  out  all  the  old  canes,  thin  out  the 
small,  weak  canes,  and  cut  off  the  tops  from  those  left, 
about  four  feet  from  the  ground.  After  that  they  grow 
thick  and  stocky,  mature  the  wood,  and  I  think  stand 
the  cold  winter  much  better  than  when  they  are  left  to 
thicken  and  are  not  cut  back.  My  blackberries  make  a 
hedge  two  and  one-half  feet  thick  by  four  feet  high, 
and  any  cane  that  grows  outside  of  that  limit  is  cut  off. 
Thus  it  is  easy  for  the  girls  to  pick  the  berries  without 
much  trouble,  the  canes  grow  so  stocky  they  never  need 
any  tying  up,  and  the  bearing  canes  are  strong  enough 
in  the  spring  to  hold  up  the  new  canes  as  they  grow  up 
through  them. 

The  currant  branch  in  the  hand  of  the  little  girl 
is  a  branch  that  was  cut  back  to  about  five  buds  of 
the  new  wood.  That  is  all  new  growth  grow^n  during 
the  spring  which  is  above  the  fruit. 


CHAPTER  XVII 

LESSONS  FROM  THE  WINNERS 

After  a  study  of  these  hundreds  of  garden 
accounts,  an  impression  is  received  of  candor  and  out- 
spoken truthfuhiess.  There  is  scarcely  an  instance 
where  inspection  or  outside  investigation  shows  the 
least  sign  of  intention  to  conceal  and  mislead.  Facts 
were  stated  with  the  greatest  completeness,  including 
some  cases  of  almost  humiliating  loss  and  failure.  It 
would  be  difficult  to  pick  out  several  hundred  persons 
of  any  other  business  or  profession  who  would  describe 
the  operations  of  a  year  with  such  frank  completeness, 
generously  passing  along  to  others  the  gains  of  their 
experience  and  thought. 

The  substance  of  the  accounts  brings  out  strikingly 
the  fact  that  any  reasonably  successful  garden  may  be 
expected  to  pay  for  itself,  including  fair  wages  for  all 
work,  and  leave  something  for  net  profit.  The  showing 
of  the  garden  in  the  line  of  profits  was  evidently  a 
surprise  to  many  contestants  who  had  never  figured 
up  the  produce  at  wholesale  price,  nor  noticed  how 
few  full  days'  work  were  needed,  especially  with 
modern  implements  ana  methods. 

Cost  and  Value  of  a  Garden. — The  figures  which 
are  here  presented  are  based  upon  the  reports  of  five 
hundred  and  fifteen  gardens  located  in  nearly  every 
state  and  territory,  Canada  and  the  provinces,  so  they 
may  be  considered  as  accurate  and  reliable.  Covering 
such  a  vast  territory,  local  conditions,  which  might  give 
different  figures,  are  avoided  and  the  summary  becomes 


LESSONS   FROM   THE   WINNErtS  247 

a  reliable  basis  of  estimate  and  is  the  only  thing  of  the 
kind  ever  published. 

EXPENSE  AND  PROFIT  OF  THE  GARDEN 

Farm  Village 

Size,   square   feet 24,372  14,866 

Value  of  garden $48.81  $568.34 

Value  of  tools i8.6i  16.93 

Interest  and  taxes 3.21  '2.2.']2t 

Use  of  tools 1.27  1.70 

Labor   26.34  19-59 

Seed 4.32  8.68 

Fertilizer    7.75  7.12 

Incidental  expenses 78  .50 

Total   cost    43.67  60.32 

Value  of  products  used 5404  54-50 

Value  of  products  sold 30.96  7.06 

Total  value  of  products 85.00  61.56 

Profit  41.33  1.28 

Gardens  have  been  separated  into  two  classes 
— those  on  farms  and  those  planted  by  village  residents, 
and  an  interesting  comparison  can  be  made  between  the 
two,  as  shown  in  the  accompanying  table.  Size  and 
value  are  the  two  most  noticeable  differences.  The 
farmer  who  wants  a  garden  either  takes  the  little 
fenced-in  spot  that  has  served  for  this  purpose  for  so 
many  years,  or  goes  out  in  the  field  and  lays  off  a  piece 
of  half  an  acre,  or  as  much  as  needed.  The  village 
and  city  resident  is  confined  to  the  back  yard  or  the 
vacant  lot.  Thus  his  plot  is  necessarily  smaller  and 
being  valuable  for  building  purposes  is  worth  more 
than  the  country  garden.  The  figures  for  value  are 
the  average  of  fifty-six  village  gardens,  which  range 
from  twenty-five  dollars  to  one  thousand  eight  hundred 
and  seventy-five  dollars  in  value,  and  at  the  rate  of 
from  one  hundred  dollars  to  over  four  thousand  dollars 
per  acre.  The  range  of  value  per  acre  of  farm  gardens 
is  not  quite  as  great,  being  as  low  as  five  dollars  per 
acre  for  unimproved  prairie  land,  to  three  hundred 
dollars    for    small    California   farms    with    irrigation 


248  PRIZE     GARDENING 

rights.  The  average  value  of  nearly  fifty  dollars  for 
a  garden  of  a  trifle  over  half  an  acre  is  a  conservative 
figure.  While  it  is  probably  double  the  value  of  the 
farm  land,  the  increase  is  due  to  the  permanent  improve- 
ment of  fruit  trees,  plants  and  vines,  asparagus  and 
rhubarb  beds,  hotbeds,  etc. 

The  value  of  tools  is  a  trifle  higher  for  the  farm 
gardens,  as  would  be  expected;  for  horse  cultivators, 
plows  and  harrows  which  are  also  used  on  the  farm 
are  often  figured  in.  For  this  reason  we  estimate  seven 
per  cent  for  the  use  of  tools  here  and  ten  per  cent  for 
those  used  in  village  gardens,  where  they  are  employed 
for  no  other  purpose. 

Interest  mid  Taxes  are  difficult  items  to  figure, 
for  the  conditions  are  so  dissimilar.  In  the  case  of 
farm  gardens  we  have  the  case  of  highly  improved 
property  used  principally  for  the  production  of  garden 
vegetables  and  fruits.  On  the  other  hand,  village  gar- 
dens are  largely  vacant  lots  or  back  yards  whose  chief 
value  is  for  building  purposes.  As  vacant  lots  they  are 
unimproved  property,  and  held  often  for  speculative 
purposes,  but  as  back  yards  they  form  a  part  of  the 
home  grounds  and  a  figure  proportionate  to  the  value 
of  the  entire  lot  is  given  them  by  the  owners. 

The  summaries  show  that  seven  and  six-tenths  per 
cent  was  allowed  for  interest  and  taxes  on  the  value 
of  farm  gardens  and  four  per  cent  on  that  of  village 
gardens.  With  one  per  cent  of  the  latter  for  taxes, 
which  would  approach  two  per  cent  of  the  assessed 
valuation,  we  have  three  per  cent  left  as  interest,  which 
is  as  much  as  should  be  charged  up  against  the  land 
for  gardening  purposes.  Taking  out  the  interest  and 
taxes  from  the  total  cost  of  the  garden  we  have  thirty- 
seven  dollars  and  fifty-nine  cents  as  the  actual  cost 
of  producing  the  vegetables  which  grew  in  village  gar- 
dens, and  forty  dollars  and  forty-six  cents  on  the  farm. 


LESSONS   FROM    THE    WINNERS  249 

Labor  Cost  is  the  most  important  item.  It  may  be 
said  that  the  cost  of  a  good  garden  is  eternal  vigilance. 
It  is  not  so  much  the  total  amount  of  labor  required 
as  that  it  be  employed  at  the  proper  time.  One  hour 
a  day  throughout  the  season  will,  with  the  use  of  suit- 
able tools,  take  care  of  a  garden  of  less  than  half  an 
acre.  The  village  gardens  have  been  worked  with  the 
most  economical  expenditure  of  labor.  This  is  because 
hand  cultivators  have  been  used  to  do  most  of  the 
work,  and,  secondly  they  have  been  kept  freer  of  weeds 
for  several  years.  Many  farm  gardens  are  foul  with 
weeds,  being  utterly  neglected  during  the  latter  part 
of  the  season,  and  the  hoe  and  hand  work  still  play 
too  prominent  a  part  in  the  cultivation.  Gardens  laid 
out  in  long,  narrow  pieces  to  allow  of  horse  cultivation 
have  been  worked  with  the  greatest  economy  of  labor. 

In  the  matter  of  seed  the  difference  is  quite  sur- 
prising. In  this  item  have  been  included  cabbage, 
tomato  and  other  plants  which  have  been  bought  for 
transplanting.  Most  village  gardeners  have  had  to 
purchase  these,  while  hotbeds  are  more  numerous  upon 
the  farm  in  which  these  plants  are  raised.  Then,  too, 
villagers  buy  more  of  the  novelties  and  new,  high- 
priced  varieties  of  vegetables  and  spend  considerably 
more  for  flowers,  bulbs  and  plants. 

Manures  and  Fertilisers. — The  expense  for  fer- 
tilizers and  manure  is  in  favor  of  the  farm,  where 
stable  manure,  upon  which  a  nominal  price  is  fixed, 
is  largely  used.  Besides  this,  one  hundred  and  ninety- 
five  gardeners  used  no  manure  ^**  fertilizer  or  failed  to 
make  report  of  any.  Stable  manure  leads  all  other 
forms  of  plant  food  in  popularity.  In  two  hundred 
and  twelve  reports  it  was  used  exclusively,  forty-thr  :e 
used  commercial  fertilizer  or  chemicals  and  sixty-five 
used  both  manure  and  fertilizers  or  chemicals.  Fresh 
manure  is  apt  to  contain  many  weed  and  grass  seeds, 


250 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


but  all  gardeners  have  a  liking  for  the  use  of  well- 
rotted  manure,  which  is  not  understood  by  users  of 
commercial  fertilizer.  The  reason  is  simple.  Land 
which  is  cropped  continually  with  hoed  crops  grows 
heavy  from  the  lack  of  humus.  This  is  supplied  by 
the  manure,  the  liberal  use  of  which  enables  the  gar- 
dener to  keep  his  ground  loose  and  friable. 

The  most  remarkable  comparison  is  probably 
between  the  value  and  amount  of  produce  consumed 
by  the  families  of  the  two  classes.  It  is  practically  the 
same.  The  greater  consumption  of  standard  sorts  of 
vegetables  by  farmers'  families  is  offset  by  a  freer  use 
of  the  rarer  sorts,  and  of  flowers,  by  village  people. 
From  the  amount  sold  one  must  not  judge  that  farmers 
sell  the  best  and  eat  the  rest.  In  all  cases  they  have 
consumed  all  that  were  wanted  and  the  kinds  sold 
were  very  largely  a  surplus  of  onions,  cabbage,  squash, 
beets  and  carrots. 

From  the  farm  gardens  thirty-six  per  cent  of  the 
produce  was  sold,  which  paid  seventy-one  per  cent  of 
the  total  cost  of  the  garden,  while  less  than  twelve  per 
cent  of  the  cost  of  the  village  garden  was  paid  by  the 
eleven  per  cent  of  produce  sold.  The  farm  garden 
paid  a  profit  of  ninety-four  per  cent  on  total  cost  as 
against  two  per  cent  for  the  village  garden.  Leaving 
out  the  item  of  interest  and  taxes,  the  farm  garden 
returned  one  hundred  and  thirteen  per  cent  profit  on 
cost  and  the  village  garden  sixty-three  per  cent. 

Profits  of  Small  Market  Gardens. — The  average 
size  of  farm  gardens  was  found  to  be  a  trifle  over  half 
an  acre  and  of  village  gardens  one-third  of  an  acre, 
the  latter  being  of  ample  size  to  produce  enough  vege- 
tables for  an  ordinary  family.  The  farm  garden 
proved  a  source  of  revenue,  thirty-six  per  cent  of  the 
total  produce  being  sold. 


LESSONS   FROM   THE   WINNERS  2$  I 

The  value  of  produce  was  eighty-five  dollars  per 
garden,  or  at  the  rate  of  one  hundred  and  seventy  dol- 
lars per  acre,  and  the  net  proftt  was  forty-one  dollars 
and  thirty-three  cents,  or  at  the  rate  of  eighty-two 
dollars  and  sixty-six  cents  per  acre.  This  is  more 
than  any  farm  crop  can  approach.  Now  if  these  gar- 
dens can  be  extended  to  four  times  the  size  or  greater, 
they  will  become  quite  an  important  source  of  the 
farmer's  income.  On  the  majority  of  farms  the  lack 
of  a  good  nearby  market  will  prevent  the  attempt  at 
gardening  on  a  commercial  scale,  except  in  favored 
localities  specially  adapted  to  certain  crops.  But  where 
one  is  located  within  five  miles  of  a  good-sized  village 
or  city,  a  small  market  garden  may  be  made  a  consid- 
erable source  of  revenue. 

There  are  two  lines  of  gardening  which  may  be 
followed.  First,  general  gardening,  in  which  most  of 
the  common  kinds  of  vegetables  are  planted  and  mar- 
keted at  wholesale  at  stores  and  butcher  shops,  or 
at  retail  by  peddling  from  house  to  house. 

Second,  special  gardening,  in  which  only  a  few 
kinds  are  grown,  such  as  may  be  raised  with  the  least 
amount  of  labor,  those  which  are  in  greatest  demand, 
or  those  for  which  a  certain  plot  of  ground  is  particu- 
larly well  adapted. 

Local  conditions  and  circumstances  must  govern 
which  kind  of  gardening  each  should  attempt.  If  one 
takes  up  market  gardening  as  the  main  part  of  his 
work,  the  most  profit  will  be  found  in  growing  a  full 
line  of  vegetables  and  selling  at  retail,  unless  he  pro- 
duces them  in  such  large  quantities  that  this  method 
is  impractical.  But  where  the  work  is  taken  up  in 
connection  with  running  a  farm,  and  partly  as  a  side 
issue,  it  will  be  found  more  profitable  generally  to  raise 
only  a  few  kinds  of  such  sorts  as  can  be  harvested  and 


252  PRIZE    GARDENING 

marketed  in  large  quantities,  such,  for  instance,  as 
onions,  squash,  turnips,  carrots  and  sweet  corn. 

The  small  market  gardens  of  those  contestants 
who  sent  in  reports  gave  a  net  profit  of  one  hundred 
and  seventeen  dollars  and  two  cents  per  acre.  They 
averaged  two  and  one-half  acres  in  size,  were  valued 
at  three  hundred  and  twenty-two  dollars  and  twenty- 
two  cents,  or  one  hundred  and  forty-three  dol- 
lars and  twenty  cents  per  acre,  and  produced  four 
hundred  and  forty-seven  dollars  and  seventy-three 
cents  worth  of  products,  or  at  the  rate  of  one 
hundred  and  ninety-nine  dollars  per  acre,  at  a 
cost  of  one  hundred  and  eighty-seven  dollars  and 
twenty-seven  cents,  or  eighty-one  dollars  and  ninety 
cents  per  acre.  The  value  of  tools  used  was  fifty- 
five  dollars  and  fifty-seven  cents.  The  labor  cost 
one  hundred  and  eleven  dollars  and  sixty-one  cents, 
seed  fifteen  dollars  and  fifty  cents,  fertilizers  twenty- 
two  dollars  and  twenty-five  cents,  interest  and  taxes 
twenty-four  dollars  and  seventeen  cents,  use  of  tools 
three  dollars  and  eighty-nine  cents,  and  incidental 
expenses  six  dollars  and  eighty-five  cents.  These  lat- 
ter included  barrels,  boxes  and  baskets,  twine,  poles, 
insect  poisons,  etc. 

The  family  consumed  fifteen  per  cent  of  the  total 
productions,  or  sixty-seven  dollars  and  fifteen  cents 
worth,  which  is  considerably  more  than  the  amount 
used  from  the  farm  and  village  gardens.  This  is 
partly  accounted  for  by  the  fact  that  the  sweet  corn 
fodder,  poor  cabbage  and  many  of  the  beets,  turnips 
and  carrots  were  fed  to  the  stock,  and  figured  in  with 
the  amount  consumed.  It  is  highly  probable  that  the 
actual  average  consumption  per  family  was  also 
greater,  owing  to  there  being  a  greater  abundance  of 
vegetables  on  hand  at  all  seasons. 

Reducing  the  figures  to  a  basis  of  an  acre,  we  find 


LESSONS    l-ROM    THE    WINNERS  253 

the  cost  of  labor  to  be  forty-nine  dollars  and  sixty  cents, 
seed  six  dollars  and  eighty-eight  cents  and  fertilizer 
nine  dollars  and  eighty-eight  cents.  The  figures  for 
seed  and  fertilizer  seem  somewhat  low,  particularly  for 
the  latter.  This  would  buy  but  one-fourth  ton  of  a 
high-grade  commercial  fertilizer,  while  one  thousand 
tive  hundred  pounds  would  not  be  an  excessive  amount, 
and  many  gardens  use  much  more. 

Hoiv  to  Make  the  Garden  Pay. — The  first  work  to 
be  done  to  make  the  garden  pay  is  to  put  the  soil  in 
condition  for  planting. 

No  matter  what  the  character  of  the  soil,  it  should 
never  be  stirred  when  so  wet  that  the  particles  will  not 
separate  freely  when  the  spade  or  the  plow  and  the 
harrow  are  used.  It  must  always  be  made  as  fine  as 
it  is  possible  to  make  it.  If  the  plot  is  sma.l,  the  spad- 
ing fork,  if  properly  used,  will  leave  the  soil  in  fit 
condition  for  planting;  excepting  for  very  fine  seeds, 
when  it  will  be  necessary  to  use  a  fine  rake,  as  not  a 
particle  of  earth  should  be  as  large  as  the  seed  that  is 
to  be  put  in  it. 

The  manure  used  should  have  been  provided  sev- 
eral months  ago,  so  that  it  can  be  pulverized  as  finely 
as  the  soil.  Then  it  should  be  so  thoroughly  and 
evenly  incorporated  that  the  one  could  scarcely  be  dis- 
tinguished from  the  other.  When  commercial  fer- 
tilizers are  used,  as  they  always  should  be,  in  equal  pro- 
portions, when  the  soil  is  continually  worked,  let  ihem 
be  evenly  distributed. 

No  matter  what  the  size  of  the  plot  may  be,  not 
more  than  one-fourth — one-sixth  would  be  better — 
should  be  used  in  the  first  planting.  For  profit,  as  well 
as  for  pleasure,  plantings  should  be  made  at  frequent 
intervals,  because  there  are  but  few  vegetables  that  are 
in  the  best  condition  for  use  longer  than  a  few  days. 
As  soon  as  the  first  planting  is  made,  preparation  for 


254  PRIZE     GARDENING 

the  second  should  commence,  and  so  on  to  the  end  of 
the  season.  The  moment  the  first  planting  has  been 
gathered,  clear  the  ground  as  quickly  as  possible  and 
prepare  for  a  second  planting,  and  follow  up  this  plan 
the  entire  season.  The  preparation  of  the  soil,  so  far 
as  the  application  of  manure  is  concerned,  and  making 
it  fine,  must  be  as  thorough  for  each  subsequent  crop 
as  for  the  first.  Do  not  think  that  once  working  and 
once  feeding  is  sufficient  for  the  season ;  it  is  not. 

No  more  manure  should  be  used  at  one  time  than 
a  given  crop  will  require.  A  surplus  is  nearly  as  fatal 
to  the  production  of  a  crop  as  a  deficit.  Plants  to  be 
productive  must  needs  have  just  as  much  nourishment 
as  they  can  assimilate ;  but  not  be  stimulated  to  excess, 
which  is  fatal  to  productiveness. 

For  success,  every  foot  of  the  soil  should  be  con- 
stantly at  work  producing  something.  Nature  will 
not  tolerate  idleness;  if  the  gardener  does  not  plant, 
she  will.  There  is  no  reason  why,  in  ordinary  seasons, 
the  garden  cannot  be  as  green  and  productive  in 
August  as  in  June.  To  that  end,  intensive  cultivation 
is  a  necessity.  The  surface  must  at  all  times  be  cov- 
ered with  a  growing  crop,  and  so  thickly  as  to,  in  a 
great  measure,  prevent  evaporation.  But  by  no  means 
plant  so  thickly  that  each  plant  cannot  have  all  the  room 
for  growth  and  air  required. 

Room  for  a  horse  to  walk  between  the  rows  is  the 
poorest  economy  possible,  besides  it  is  not  necessary. 
For  instance,  when  we  set  our  cabbage  or  cauliflower 
plants,  which  require  the  greater  part  of  the  season  to 
mature,  make  an  intermediate  row  of  some  quick- 
growing  vegetable. 

Imitate  our  up-to-date  market  gardeners  near  all 
large  cities.  When  they  set  their  early  cabbage  plants, 
they  are  in  rows  thirty  inches  apart,  the  plants  fifteen 
inches  apart  in  the  row.     Between  these  plants  they 


LESSORS   FROM    TUE    WINNERS 


255 


put  a  plant  of  lettuce,  and  between  each  row  of  cabbage 
a  row  of  lettuce;  then  between  the  rows  of  cabbage 
and  lettuce  they  sow  a  row  of  radishes,  which  gives  but 
about  seven  inches  to  a  row  of  vegetables. —  [C.  L. 
Allen,  New  York. 

What  Should  a  Garden  Contain f — This  will 
depend  largely  upon  the  size  and  tastes  of  the  family. 
It  must  contain  what  we  might  call  the  standbys,  such 
as  sweet  corn,  potatoes,  beans,  peas,  cabbages,  toma- 
toes and  beets.  In  addition,  I  would  add  a  large 
asparagus  bed  of  some  mammoth  variety,  a  good  straw- 
berry bed  of  the  best  sorts,  currants,  gooseberries, 
blackberries  and  other  small  fruits,  with  a  good-sized 
bed  of  rhubarb. 

I  have  tested  many  varieties  of  small  fruits  and 
vegetables  and  have  discarded  the  greater  part.  No 
one  can  tell  their  value  by  the  testimony  of  seedsmen 
and  peddlers.  A  test  is  the  only  certain  way.  In 
Illinois,  I  used  to  raise  many  bushels  of  raspberries, 
but  here  it  is  difficult  to  get  them  to  grow.  Besides 
the  vegetables  and  fruit  mentioned  above,  I  would  add 
salsify,  carrots,  radishes  and  parsnips.  Of  course  the 
likes  and  dislikes  of  every  family  must  govern  the 
plan  to  a  large  extent. 

In  raising  tomatoes,  I  put  but  one  plant  in  a  place. 
Set  the  plants  in  rows  four  feet  apart  and  the  plants 
four  feet  apart  in  the  row.  Get  only  the  best  kinds 
and  those  that  you  know  are  valuable.  Of  most  vege- 
tables, secure  very  early  and  late  varieties,  so  that  you 
will  have  them  throughout  the  season.  A  good  garden 
must  be  well  plowed  and  spaded  and  then  harrowed 
or  raked,  so  as  to  make  fine  the  seed  bed.  Then  the 
seed  must  be  well  planted,  not  too  deep  nor  too  shal- 
low. After  the  plants  are  up,  give  thorough  cultiva- 
tion, keeping  the  ground  well  stirred  and  clear  of 
weeds.     The  wheel  hoe  must  be  used  freely  in  a  well- 


256  PRIZE     GARDENING 

kept  garden.  One  man  can  do  more  with  it  in  two 
hours  than  he  can  in  a  whole  day  with  the  old- 
fashioned  kind.— [E.  S.  Phelps. 

Grozving  and  Shozving  Vegetables. — There  can  be 
no  general  rule  regarding  the  proper  size  of  vegetables 
or  fruits  for  exhibition,  but  the  present  custom  of 
exhibiting  vegetables  of  a  smaller  size  than  formerly 
is  a  great  improvement.  This  applies  particularly  to 
such  vegetables  as  potatoes,  beets,  carrots  and  parsnips, 
as  the  tendency  of  these  is  to  grow  too  large ;  but  with 
such  as  salsify  and  horse-radish,  the  larger  they  are 
(providing  they  are  fairly  smooth)  the  better.  To 
have  any  of  these  roots  in  good  condition  to  exhibit, 
they  should  be  matured,  or  nearly  so,  and  to  get  the 
plumpness  and  color  which  is  desirable  they  should 
have  an  abundance  of  potash. 

The  tendency  to  give  prizes  to  extra  large  speci- 
mens of  potatoes  is  not  encouraged  at  this  time,  and, 
as  the  exhibitors  are  after  prizes,  if  the  judges  rec- 
ognize only  medium-sized,  smooth  specimens,  those 
will  soon  be  the  kind  exhibited.  I  have  raised  potatoes 
of  fair  quality  and  smoothness  on  very  heavily  manured 
market  garden  land,  but  they  are  not  a  crop  that 
responds  to  heavy  manuring. 

To  grow  the  best  and  handsomest  potatoes  pos- 
sible, I  would  use  no  manure  the  year  the  potatoes  are 
planted,  but  from  one  thousand  to  two  thousand  pounds 
good  fertilizer  per  acre,  about  one-half  broadcast  and 
one-half  in  the  drill,  thoroughly  mixed,  using  large 
seed  cut  to  two-eye  pieces,  and  planted  early  in  May 
in  drills  eighteen  to  twenty-two  inches  by  thirty  to 
forty-two  inches  apart,  the  latter  distances  for  the  late 
varieties.  Give  thorough  cultivation  and  plenty  of 
paris  green  and  bordeaux  mixture,  and  you  should 
have  potatoes  of  the  best  quality. 


LESSONS    FROM    THE    WINNERS  257 

Perhaps  there  is  no  vegetable  that  is  more  often 
exhibited  and  wrongly  judged  than  celery.  Celery,  to 
be  good  for  the  table  or  market,  should  have  a  head 
as  much  as  lettuce  or  cabbage,  and  to  get  this  head  it 
is  necessary  to  sacrifice  the  older  leaves  ;  in  fact,  as  you 
bring  the  head  to  perfection  you  lose  all  of  the  outer 
leaves,  but  the  same  is  true  of  lettuce  or  cabbage. 
Bunches  of  what  I  call  *'  celery  leaves  "  may  occasion- 
ally be  picked  from  among  heads  of  good  celery,  but 
the  methods  of  growing  the  two  are  entirely  different. 

To  grow  the  bunch  of  celery  leaves,  the  plants 
must  have  considerable  room  and  a  long  season  of 
growth.  They  may  grow  quite  rapidly  at  first,  but 
should  continue  growing  less  and  less  as  they  near 
maturity,  because  a  sudden  start  will  cause  the  heart 
to  develop,  the  outer  leaves  to  soften,  and  a  head  will 
then  begin  to  form.  I  have  seen  them  and  have  raised 
some,  but  do  not  try  to  grow  them  now,  as  they  are 
not  wanted  in  the  markets.  In  growing  the  heads  of 
celery,  the  method  early  in  the  season  makes  but  little 
difference  except  in  regard  to  the  size  of  the  head.  If 
you  would  have  a  shouldered  head  of  nice  proportions, 
and  not  too  tall,  the  plants  must  be  set  ten  or  more 
inches  apart ;  but  if  you  want  nice  celery  for  family 
use  or  market,  from  four  to  six  inches  should  give  a 
more  satisfactory  crop.  To  get  celery  of  the  best  qual- 
ity it  must  be  grown  rapdly,  and  it  is  quite  important 
that  it  should  take  an  extra  start  when  we  begin  to 
blanch  it. 

Celery  that  is  banked  with  earth  gets  this  start 
from  the  cutting  of  the  roots  and  the  chance  that  those 
roots  which  are  left  get  to  work  up  into  the  soft  earth 
of  the  bank.  Perhaps  the  best  way  to  start  golden 
celery  that  is  to  be  boarded  is  to  give  a  good  watering 
and  work  the  ground  about  the  time  the  boards  are  set 
up.     This  gives  celery  of  fair  quality,  but  no  method 


258  PRIZE     GARDENING 

will  give  as  good  celery  in  the  early  fall  as  can  be  pro- 
duced later  when  the  weather  becomes  cooler.  Celery 
grown  in  this  way  will  not  keep  so  well  as  that  of 
poorer  quality. —  [H.  R.  Kinney,  Massachusetts. 

For  Early  Garden  Vegetables. — The  ground 
should  be  plowed  deep  and  w^  manured  to  insure  the 
quick  growth  of  all  vegetables.  I  find  the  addition 
of  a  little  lime  does  well  in  our  soil,  though  it  might 
not  on  all  soils.  It  does  not  pay  to  plant  seeds  in  the 
open  ground  until  it  has  become  warm.  They  will 
not  germinate  readily,  and  many  of  them  will  be  lost. 

When  very  early  cucumbers  are  wanted,  I  have 
found  it  an  excellent  way  to  place  pieces  of  sod  six 
inches  square  on  boards  and  plant  the  seeds  in  them. 
I  keep  the  sods  by  the  kitchen  stove  until  the  plants 
are  up,  then  I  remove  to  a  south  window  upstairs  near 
the  stovepipe  or  chimney,  where  they  get  heat  from 
below  as  well  as  the  warm  sun  most  of  the  day.  As 
soon  as  danger  of  frost  is  past  I  plant  my  sods  out 
and  thus  I  have  cucumbers  at  least  four  weeks  earlier 
than  I  otherwise  would.  The  same  course  can  be  pur- 
sued with  melons,  and  when  one  raises  melons  for 
market  it  is  quite  an  item  to  have  a  dozen  hills  bearing  a 
month  before  any  of  the  other  growers. 

Sweet  corn  can  also  be  grown  in  the  same  way 
and  when  one  has  the  variety  known  as  Six  Weeks, 
it  does  not  take  long  after  setting  out  to  have  early 
corn.  Of  course  the  window  must  be  kept  open  when 
there  is  no  danger  of  frost,  so  that  the  plants  may  all 
be  hardy,  and  not  notice  the  difference  in  climate  when 
set  out. 

I  always  start  my  tomatoes  and  cabbages  in  the 
house  and  have  learned  that  young  tomatoes  take  root 
very  easily  and  that  it  is  an  advantage  rather  than 
otherwise  to  transplant  them. 

Peas  should  be  planted  as  soon  as  the  ground  is 


LESSONS   FROM    THE    WINxNERS  259 

warm  enough  for  them  to  germinate.  They  require 
an  abundance  of  manure  mixed  with  deeply  broken 
soil,  and  should  be  planted  at  least  two  inches  deep. 
1  always  start  my  early  celery  in  the  house  and  set  it 
out  as  soon  as  I  do  my  cabbages  and  tomatoes. 

Lettuce  can  be  grown  large  enough  for  use  in  a 
sunny  window.  I  have  grown  it  that  way  and  we 
have  had  it  to  eat  from  the  first  of  March  all  through 
the  season. —  [Geneva  March,  Iowa. 

Some  Good  Vegetables  Not  Generally  Grown. — 
Some  of  the  most  desirable  garden  vegetables  are  neg- 
lected by  most  farmers  and  many  village  gardeners. 
Spinach  should  be  planted  either  in  the  fall  or  the  first 
thing  in  the  spring,  then  it  will  come  in  when  other 
greens  are  scarce.  If  this  is  once  tried  you  will  never 
be  without  it.  Prepare  a  small  bed  in  some  sunny 
part  of  the  garden  as  soon  as  the  frost  is  out.  Sow 
the  seed  and  nature  will  do  the  rest. 

Cauliflower  is  another  neglected  vegetable.  It  is 
almost  as  easily  grown  as  cabbage.  It  requires  about 
the  same  treatment  and  in  many  respects  is  even  more 
desirable.  The  only  difficulty  I  find  in  growing  good 
cauliflower  is  to  get  good  seed,  and  if  ordered  from 
some  reliable  house  there  will  be  no  trouble.  Get  Hen- 
derson's Snowball  or  Burpee's  Early.  Another  vege- 
table not  common  and  which  requires  no  great  skill  is 
kohl-rabi.  This  should  be  sown  early  for  spring  and 
summer  use  and  then  later  in  the  summer  sow  for 
winter.  It  is  given  the  same  treatment  as  the  turnip 
and  possesses  some  of  the  characteristics  of  both  the 
turnip  and  cabbage. 

No  garden  is  complete  without  a  good  supply  of 
celery.  Sow  a  few  seeds  in  a  hotbed  or  in  boxes  in 
the  house,  then  in  July  transplant  to  rows  in  the  gar- 
den. These  should  be  about  one  foot  apart  in  the  row 
and  the  rows  four  or  five  feet  apart.     This  can  be  set 


260  PRIZE    GARDENING 

between  rows  of  early  peas  or  beans  and  the  ground 
thus  made  to  produce  two  crops  in  one  season.  As 
soon  as  the  first  crop  is  removed,  give  thorough 
cukivation.  For  blanching,  the  soil  may  be  thrown  up 
about  the  plants,  or  if  you  have  a  few  old  tiles  these 
can  be  slipped  over  the  bunches  of  celery  and  they  will 
whiten  nicely.  The  dwarf  varieties,  such  as  Boston 
Market  and  White  Plume,  are  generally  the  earliest 
and  best  for  amateurs. 

A  few  plants  of  Brussels  sprouts  will  be  found 
quite  an  addition,  and  as  these  are  a  kind  of  cabbage, 
the  treatment  is  the  same  as  for  cabbage  or  cauliflower. 
The  plants  grow  from  two  and  one-half  to  four  feet 
high  and  bear  small  heads,  which  are  tender  and  crisp. 
They  should  be  cooked  or  served  about  the  same  as 
cabbage.  If  your  family  is  fond  of  soups,  sow  a  short 
row  of  okra.  The  seed  should  be  placed  a  few  inches 
apart,  then  later  thinned  so  that  the  plants  will  be 
one  and  one-half  feet  apart.  This  crop  grows  very 
easily  and  the  long,  tender  seed  pods  will  be  found  an 
excellent  addition  to  any  soup.  The  pods  can  also  be 
gathered  and  dried  and  kept  for  winter  use. 

One  of  the  very  best  and  least  known  garden 
plants  is  salsify,  or  vegetable  oyster.  This  is  very 
hardy  and  is  as  easily  grown  as  parsnips.  Sow  early 
in  the  spring  in  rows  twelve  or  fourteen  inches  apart. 
When  the  crop  is  wanted  for  winter,  take  up  late  in 
the  fall  and  spread  in  boxes  and  cover  with  soil.  The 
roots  will  keep  nicely  until  spring.  They  will  prob- 
ably shrivel  somewhat,  but  when  placed  in  water  will 
regain  their  natural  appearance.  Properly  cooked, 
some  people  prefer  this  to  the  genuine  oyster.  Prob- 
ably the  best  varieties  are  Mammoth  Sandwich  Island 
and  Bond's  Mammoth. —  [F.  B.  Van  Orman,  Iowa. 

A  Practical  Farm  Gardener. — I  do  not  think  it 
advisable  to  use  the  same  piece  of  ground  for  a  long 


LESSONS   FROM    THE    WINNERS  261 

term  of  years ;  and  so  have  this  year  set  apart  a  spot 
never  worked  as  a  garden  before.  As  it  was  very 
rich  I  have  not  plowed  under  any  manure.  When 
ready  to  plant  in  the  spring  I  shall  plow  again  and 
use  some  commercial  fertilizer  for  certain  crops.  I 
find  that  no  part  of  my  farm  yields  more  toward  the 
support  of  my  family  than  my  garden,  and  so  1  am  not 
very  caretul  to  limit  the  extent  of  its  bounds. 

I  find  that  it  does  not  pay  to  begin  work  in 
the  garden  too  soon  in  the  spring,  especially  if 
the  soil  be  clay.  I  have  seen  some  gardens  spoiled 
for  the  entire  season  by  plowing  when  too  wet. 
The  soil  was  heavy  at  plowing  and  made  more 
so  by  the  heavy  rains  of  spring  and  the  sun- 
shine. Of  all  discouraging  places  to  work,  a  hard- 
baked  garden  is  the  most  so.  But  when  the  earth  is 
fairly  dry  and  warm,  I  plow  and  thoroughly  harrow 
my  garden.  If  the  ground  be  old,  a  liberal  supply  of 
commercial  fertilizer  should  be  harrowed  in.  We  used 
to  plant  some  kind  of  vegetables,  such  as  onions,  rad- 
ishes and  beets,  in  square  or  oblong  beds ;  but  we  some 
time  ago  learned  that  too  much  labor  was  required  to 
keep  the  weeds  subdued,  and  have  since  put  everything 
into  rows,  so  that  the  horse  and  cultivator  may  do  the 
work  formerly  done  by  hand. 

The  preliminaries  arranged,  what  shall  we  put  in 
our  garden?  With  us,  this  plan  prevails.  Peas  and 
onions  go  in  first.  We  aim  to  have  new  peas  by  the 
latter  part  of  June  or  the  Fourth  of  July  at  the  latest. 
Then  come  early  potatoes.  Our  favorites  are  Early 
Vermont  and  Early  Market.  At  first  a  couple  of  rows 
are  planted  lengthwise  of  the  garden,  to  be  followed 
in  a  week  or  two  by  another  two  rows.  These  furnish 
new  potatoes  to  go  with  the  peas  for  the  Fourth,  and 
our  table  supply  all  summer  long  comes  from  these 
few  rows  in  the  garden. 


262  PRIZE     GARDENING 

Radishes  quickly  follow,  and  as  soon  as  the  ist 
to  the  loth  of  May  we  begin  to  put  in  sweet  corn.  Of 
this  we  make  two  and  often  three  plantings.  We  are 
very  fond  of  this  delicacy  and  manage  to  have  it  early 
and  late  in  the  season.  Crosby's  Early  and  Perry's 
Hybrid  are  favorites  for  early  planting,  and  for  later 
use  Stowell's  Evergreen.  Beans,  cucumbers,  squashes 
and  beets  may  come  now  at  any  time.  Tomato,  celery, 
turnip  and  cabbage  plants  are  started  in  the  house 
early  and  set  out  at  intervals  in  June.  We  like  toma- 
toes very  much  and  usually  put  out  about  twenty-five 
plants  for  our  own  use.  A  row  of  rhubarb  plants 
along  one  side  of  the  garden  furnishes  material  for 
sauce  and  pies  early  in  the  season.  At  one  end  of  our 
garden  we  also  have  a  few  raspberries  and  grapevines. 
Strawberries  we  have  in  another  field.  Just  as  soon 
as  the  potatoes  begin  to  peep  out  we  start  the  culti- 
vator, and  from  that  time  on  we  keep  the  horse  and 
plow  busy  subduing  weeds.  What  cannot  be  done  in 
that  way  we  finish  with  the  hand  hoe. 

All  that  remains  from  the  summer's  using  is  care- 
fully harvested  in  the  fall.  Celery  we  bank  in  October 
and  take  in  a  month  later,  packing  it  with  plenty  of 
dirt  in  a  deep  box  in  the  cellar  and  covering  it  with  old 
sacks.  Here  it  bleaches  nicely  and  keeps  till  far  into 
the  winter.  Giant  Paschal  we  hold  to  be  the  finest. 
It  is  very  tender  and  remains  fresh  until  February. 
Our  garden  is  no  longer  a  source  of  pleasure  and 
profit ;  it  has  come  to  be  an  absolute  necessity.  Very 
few  of  us  realize  how  much  help  a  good  garden  is  in 
maintaining  the  family.  Such  a  garden  as  I  have 
described  is  in  every  way  practical  upon  every  farm. — 
[Edgar  L.  Vincent,  New  York. 

Marketing. — In  all  sections  of  the  country,  prices 
for  garden  stuff  seem  to  rule  comparatively  high.  In 
the  corn  and  wheat  belts,  where  staple  farm  produce 


LESSSONS   FROM   THE   WINNERS  263 

is  low  in  price,  vegetables  are  in  some  towns  scarce  and 
high,  and  in  the  drier  sections  of  the  prairie  states  a 
good  garden  appears  almost  an  object  of  curiosity, 
while  prices  are  correspondingly  high.  Pacific  coast 
gardeners  complain  that  Chinese  competition  keeps 
prices  down,  yet  some  assert  that  Chinese  gardeners 
cannot  compete  with  a  garden  worked  with  improved 
implements.  Highest  prices  were  reported  by  garden- 
ers located  near  mining  settlements.  Even  in  small 
farming  towns,  where  it  might  be  supposed  that  most 
people  would  have  good  gardens  of  their  own,  prize 
gardeners  often  found  a  demand  far  in  excess  of  what 
they  had  to  sell. 

Where  no  market  was  convenient,  enterprising 
gardeners  brought  one  to  the  farm ;  in  other  words, 
they  took  summer  boarders.  Some  who  did  not  care 
to  take  boarders  sold  vegetables  to  those  who  did.  Still 
another  says :  "  I  sold  my  garden  truck  mostly  to 
summer  cottagers  that  were  staying  here,  and  so  saved 
all  expense  of  teaming.  It  was  a  great  pleasure  to 
them,  as  they  rould  watch  the  garden  from  start  to 
finish."  These  ''  cottagers  "  are  people  who  come  to 
the  country  to  live  in  camp  style  for  the  summer  and 
are  willing  to  pay  city  prices  for  the  best  vegetables 
and  fruit. 

In  some  cases  produce  was  sold  to  peddlers  who 
came  to  the  farm  or  garden  and  paid  wholesale  prices, 
gathering  the  produce  themselves.  The  surplus  of 
small  city  gardens  was  often  eagerly  bought  by  neigh- 
bors glad  of  a  chance  to  secure  produce  fresh  from 
the  soil.  But  by  far  the  most  common  method  of  dis- 
posal was  to  team  the  tnick  to  the  nearest  town  or  city, 
either  selling  it  to  storekeepers  or  peddling  from  house 
to  house.  Those  who  had  retail  routes  of  this  kind 
usually  found  them  very  profitable.  In  computing  the 
wholesale  price,  they  charged  off  from  ten  to  thirty 


264  PRIZE     GARDENING 

per  cent  for  retailing,  but  it  was  several  times  stated 
that  dealers  sometimes  sold  produce  at  an  advance  of 
forty  or  fifty  or  even  one  hundred  per  cent  above  the 
price  they  had  paid  the  grower. 

retailing  it  is  of  advantage  in  many  ways  to 
make  regular  trips  and  to  take  orders  in  advance.  One 
gardener  advertised  in  the  local  papers  for  customers 
to  leave  orders  at  a  certain  store.  These  orders  were 
filled  on  the  following  day.  Others  took  their  own 
orders  direct  as  they  made  regular  trips.  Writes  A.  E. 
Ross :  *'  My  marketing  was  all  done  in  the  shortest 
possible  time.  My  method  was  as  follows :  I  take 
my  load  over;  it  is  all  sold  before  I  start.  That  is,  I 
go  to  my  customers,  the  same  as  this  morning,  take 
their  orders  for  the  next  morning.  I  come  home,  get 
my  load  ready  over  night,  and  start  at  six  o'clock  the 
next  morning.  I  go  directly  and  deliver  and  take  my 
orders  for  the  next  morning.  In  this  way  I  have  no 
running  around,  but  get  home  to  do  a  day's  work.  I 
never  take  an  order  that  I  cannot  fill." 

Tact  in  choosing  crops  often  played  an  important 
part  in  creating  a  market  where  none  seemed  to  exist. 
Such  excellent  vegetables  as  celery,  cauliflower,  egg 
plant,  muskmelon,  etc.,  are  often  very  scarce  in  markets 
otherwise  well  supplied.  Early  cabbages,  tomatoes, 
potatoes,  turnips,  etc.,  often  sold  well  in  places  where 
the  late  crop  of  the  same  vegetable  was  a  glut.  The 
superior  produce  of  irrigated  gardens  sometimes  had 
great  advantage. 

Observes  W.  T.  Brickey :  "  Whatever  is  grown 
for  market  should  be  ready  at  the  time  when  people 
are  hungry  for  that  sort  of  thing,  for  the  human  appe- 
tite is  as  changeable  as  the  moon."  The  gardener  who 
can  thus  master  the  market  needs  no  other  receipt  for 
money  making. 


CHAPTER   XVIII 

A    GARDEN    SYMPOSIUM 

To  shed  further  hght  upon  the  results  of  the  con- 
test, a  hst  of  several  questions  was  sent  to  the  twenty- 
five  leading  winners,  asking  their  advice  on  subjects 
considered  of  direct  practical  interest,  and  upon  which 
the  experience  of  the  contestants  would  especially  qual- 
ify them  to  express  an  opinion. 

Si^e  of  Garden. — The  majority  of  replies  suggest 
that  a  small  garden  is  sufficient  for  the  average  farm. 
One-eighth  acre  is  the  size  most  often  mentioned; 
many  advise  one-fourth  acre  or  one-half  acre  and  most 
of  the  remaining  replies  range  between  one-fourth  and 
one  acre.  A  few  thiak  large  acreage  desirable.  A 
great  many  advise  a  rectangular  piece  and  planting  in 
long  rows,  allowing  the  use  of  horse  implements  in 
cultivation  ;  rows  to  be  the  greatest  length  that  the  field 
will  permit. 

A  good-sized,  well-arranged  garden  is  advised  by 
A.  T.  Giauque,  who  writes :  ''As  the  average  farmer 
is  engaged  with  about  all  the  field  crops  he  can  handle, 
one-half  acre  is  considered  sufficient,  one-half  of  which 
is  devoted  to  garden  vegetables  for  family  use,  the 
other  half  to  shrubbery  or  small  fruits.  If,  however, 
it  is  desired  to  raise  all  the  sweet  corn  for  table  use, 
early  potatoes,  melons  and  cucumbers  within  the  garden 
enclosed,  then  I  w^ould  say  one  acre  is  none  too  much. 
My  garden  has  been  enlarged  to  one-half  acre  to  pro- 
vide room  for  the  shrubbery  awarded  in  the  late  garden 
contest,  and  has  two  by  twenty  rods  devoted  to  garden 
vegetables   proper,   one    by   twenty  rods  planted  to 


266  PRIZE     GARDENING 

Strawberries,  the  remaining  rod  of  width  being  divided 
to  blackberries,  raspberries,  currants  and  gooseberries, 
with  young  peach  trees  set  out  next  the  fence  on  the 
north  side  twenty  rods  in  length,  grapevines  along  the 
south  fence,  with  rhubarb,  horse-radish  and  sage  along 
one  end  fence.  I  should  have  stated  that  off  this  allot- 
ment to  shrubbery  that  the  end  nearest  the  house  is  a 
block  about  a  rod  square  allotted  to  flowers." 

Mrs.  L.  A.  Ludwig  advises  from  a  dozen  square 
rods  to  an  acre  for  a  family  of  five  or  six.  C.  P. 
Augur  recommends  not  less  than  one-half  acre  for  a 
family  of  from  five  to  six  persons.  B.  S.  Higley  thinks 
that  if  potatoes  are  relegated  to  field  culture,  one- 
eighth  acre  is  sufficient  for  the  garden.  Mrs.  W.  D. 
Goss  considers  one  hundred  by  forty  feet  a  convenient 
size.  R.  J.  Clark  and  others  think  at  least  one-fourth 
acre  desirable  if  berries  and  fruit  are  to  be  included. 

Causes  of  Failure. — "Want  of  care"  is  the  cause  of 
failure  mentioned  by  the  greatest  number  of  replies. 
The  same  idea  is  expressed  by  the  terms  "neglect," 
"poor  cultivation,"  etc.  C.  P.  Augur  says:  "Any  gar- 
den will  thrive  to  some  extent  if  looked  after  with 
intelligent  interest  and  tilled  with  cheerful  persistence. 
Fertility  is  not  nearly  so  necessary  as  faithful  efTort." 

Several  replies  emphasize  the  need  of  frequently 
stirring  the  soil.  Others  mention  the  need  of  general 
thoroughness.  Says  A.  P.  Edge:  "Farmers  too  often 
start  early  in  the  season,  but  let  it  care  for  itself  later 
and  wonder  why  the  drouth  is  so  hard  on  their  garden." 
L.  E.  Dimock  mentions  poor  seed  and  lack  of  proper 
care  in  planting.  C.  E.  Belden  thinks  gardeners  try 
to  do  too  much  with  insufficient  help.  "Farmers," 
writes  W.  P.  Gray,  "consider  the  garden  but  a  small 
part  of  the  farm,  and  bringing  in  no  cash,  and  they 
put  it  down  as  a  last  consideration." 


A  GARDEN  SYMPOSIUM  267 

"Disinclination  for  personal  labor"  is  the  way  R.  J. 
Clark  sums  up  his  reasons  for  poor  gardens.  "When 
I  commenced  to  make  a  garden,"  writes  l\  H.  Sher- 
idan, "I  put  everything  in  too  close,  and  had  to  do  too 
much  hand  work,  and  the  vegetables  were  small,  and 
I  would  get  discouraged  and  think  it  was  cheaper  to 
buy  them  than  to  raise  vegetables." 

Another  common  cause,  according  to  John  Tye, 
is  that  the  garden  is  left  entirely  for  the  farmer's  wife 
to  look  after,  "and  although  farmers'  wives  on  an  aver- 
age make  good  gardeners  and  raise  splendid  vege- 
tables, the  farmer  himself  fails  to  put  up  a  suitable 
fence  around  the  garden,  and  some  morning  when  the 
good  wife  goes  to  the  garden  to  pull  some  lettuce  or 
radish  for  breakfast,  she  finds  cows,  hogs  or  sheep 
have  been  there  before  her,  and  have  eaten  or  de- 
stroyed nearly  all  the  vegetables." 

The  main  trouble,  according  to  A.  T.  Giauque, 
arises  from  getting  so  much  absorbed  in  the  field  work 
as  to  forget  to  cultivate  it  until  the  weeds  have  hidden 
beyond  discovery  all  the  delicate  plants  that  are  strug- 
gling for  standing  room,  or  from  "planting  doubtful 
seeds  in  uncertain  rows,  then  turning  the  garden  over 
to  the  women  for  tending,  and  to  Providence  for  the 
fruits." 

Other  reasons  advanced  are  :  "Lack  of  nitrogen  in 
the  soil,"  "want  of  manure,"  "loose  planting  of  the  seed 
and  at  improper  depth,"  "inexperience,"  "lack  of  nat- 
ural liking  for  gardening.'' 

Figliting  Insects. — Prize  winners  were  requested  to 
describe  the  most  effective  remedy  for  insects,  accord- 
ing to  their  experience.  Paris  green  received  the  most 
votes,  its  use  being  recommended  for  potato  bugs  in 
the  majority  of  instances.  Several  preferred  to  com- 
bine bordeaux  mixture  with  the  green,  thus  destroying, 
or  rather  preventing,  blights,  etc.     In  using  these  two 


2(i^  PRIZE     GARDENING 

remedies  together,  they  are  commonly  appHed  in  Hquid 
form.  When  green  alone  is  used,  several  recommend 
applying  it  clear  with  a  poison  gun,  others  mix  with 
plaster  or  flour.  One  contestant  urges  that  paris 
green  must  be  used  with  great  caution  in  the  family 
garden.  Another  recommends  paris  green  solution  in 
very  fine  spray  for  cucumber  beetles. 

A  few  prefer  london  purple  to  the  green.  C.  P. 
Augur  prefers  as  a  general  insect  remedy  an  emulsion 
of  quassia  chip  tea,  soft  soap  and  kerosene.  For  pota- 
toes and  vines  E.  R.  Flagg  prefers  Bug  Death 
sprinkled  on  when  vines  are  damp.  Liquid  manure  is 
spoken  of  by  B.  S.  Higley  as  a  sovereign  remedy  for 
cucumber  bugs.  Others  use  for  these  and  squash  bugs 
air-slaked  lime,  coal  ashes  or  dust,  sprinkled  on  the 
vines  when  wet.  C.  E.  Brookhart  humorously  recom- 
mends "two  small  wooden  paddles ;  get  your  bug  on 
one,  whack  it  with  the  other." 

Complains  Mr.  Sheridan  of  Colorado:  "There  is 
a  little  insect  that  eats  the  leaves  of  my  radishes  when 
they  first  come  up.  I  dust  them  with  paris  green. 
There  is  also  a  kind  of  scale  that  looks  like  flakes  of 
bran  that  destroys  tomatoes.  I  spray  with  coal  oil 
emulsion  with  satisfactory  results,  also  spray  canta- 
loupe vines  with  the  same  for  a  green  louse  that  attacks 
them." 

A  believer  in  prevention  is  Mrs.  L.  M.  A.  Hall, 
who  says :  *T  am  never  troubled  much  with  insects,  as 
I  burn  all  litter  and  garden  rubbish  early  in  the  fall, 
thereby  killing  a  great  many  eggs.  On  every  trip  to 
the  garden  I  destroy  every  bug  and  ^gg,  and  two  large 
broods  of  chickens  do  the  rest." 

One  gardener  uses  for  cabbage  worms  an  appli- 
cation of  water  in  which  tar  has  been  kept  over  night. 
G.  W.  Hoover  finds  kerosene  emulsion  effective;  one 
quart  oil  to  thirty  gallons  of  water,  applied  every  two 


A  GARDEN  SYMPOSIUM  269 

weeks  for  cabbage  lice  and  similar  insects.  Hellebore 
is  usually  preferred  for  currant  worms,  but  some  use 
paris  green.  Slug  Shot  is  mentioned  by  several.  A 
number  speak  of  wood  ashes  for  onion  maggot  and  to 
sprinkle  on  young  plants  as  a  preventive. 

ITorst  Weeds. — Purslane  is  the  weed  oftenest  men- 
tioned, and  the  only  remedy  offered  is  thorough  culti- 
vation. A.  P.  Edge  half  seriously  suggests  that  gar- 
deners encourage  the  use  of  the  weed  for  greens.  A 
close  second  in  unpopularity  is  witch  grass,  also  called 
couch  grass,  etc.  When  it  becomes  once  established 
in  a  garden  no  remedy  is  considered  effective  except 
cultivation  of  a  crop  which  requires  frequent  hoeing 
and  occupies  the  ground  the  whole  season.  In  a  small 
garden  it  is  practicable  to  root  it  out  and  carry  it  away, 
and  this  method  is  frequently  recommended,  using  a 
harrow  to  loosen  the  roots  and  then  raking  them  off' 
the  piece.  All  agree  that  persistent  cultivation 
throughout  the  season  will  kill  it.  Several  have  tried 
spraying  weeds  with  copper  mixtures,  but  nobody 
appears  to  consider  this  method  more  economical  than 
the  common  methods. 

Other  weeds  and  remedies  mentioned  are:  Wild 
lettuce,  for  which  prevention  is  declared  better  than 
cure ;  Canada  thistle,  to  be  dug,  dried  and  burned ;  knot 
grass,  clean  culture ;  ground  ivy,  rooting  out ;  smart- 
weed,  killed  by  frequent  cultivation ;  sorrel,  driven  out 
by  clean  culture  and  by  liming  the  soil. 

The  Best  Six  Implements  mentioned  are  plow,  cul- 
tivator, hoe,  steel  rake,  harrow  and  seed  drill ;  that  is, 
the  six  above  named  were  mentioned  in  the  greatest 
number  of  replies.  Here  is  C.  P.  Augur's  list :  Chilled 
steel  reversible  plow,  smoothing  harrow,  seed  drill, 
horse  cultivator,  spike-tooth  cultivator  and  compressed 
air  sprayer.  Mrs.  L.  A.  Ludwig  prefers  a  spade,  steel 
rake,  ten-inch  plow,  whether  to  be  drawn  by  one  or 


A  GARDEN   SYMTOSIUM  2/1 

more  horses,  hand  cart,  sprinkHng  can,  combined  seed 
drill  and  wheel  hoe.  "But  better  than  all,  a  set  of  nim- 
ble fingers  backed  by  a  willing,  honest  heart  and  mind." 
The  list  of  B.  A.  Higley  comprises  single  wheel  hoe, 
double  wheel  hoe,  spade,  shovel,  hoe,  rake.  C.  E. 
Brookhart  of  Tennessee  recommends  two-horse  steel 
turning  plow,  horse  hoe  and  cultivator,  steel  rake,  com- 
mon hoe,  pointed  onion  hoe,  combined  twelve-tooth 
cultivator  and  harrow.  B.  S.  Rembaugh  would  choose 
seed  sower^  double  wheel  hoe,  twelve-tooth  harrow  and 
cultivator,  Breed's  weeder,  Cyclone  pulverizer,  disk  and 
spike  harrow,  and  a  first-class  plow. 

Most  Useful  Vegetables. — The  six  vegetables  re- 
ceiving most  general  approval  for  the  family  garden  are 
given  below,  with  the  varieties  of  each  most  frequently 
mentioned :  Beans :  Bush  Lima,  Golden  Wax  and 
Black  Wax.  Peas :  Nott's  Excelsior,  Little  Gem  and 
Gradus.  Tomato :  Livingston  Perfection,  Ponderosa, 
Dwarf  Champion.  Cabbage  :  Early  W^inningstadt  and 
Sure  Head.  Corn :  Country  Gentleman  and  Ever- 
green.   Onions :  Yellow  Danvers. 

"The  choice  of  vegetables  is  a  matter  of  taste," 
thinks  A.  P.  Edge  of  New  Jersey,  but  he  mentions 
corn,  peas,  asparagus,  tomatoes,  potatoes,  cabbage, 
string  beans,  lima  beans,  onions,  celery  and  tgg  plant, 
without  naming  varieties. 

For  a  southwestern  list  is  quoted  C.  E.  Brook- 
hart's  choice  of  White  Silver-skin  onion.  Long-stand- 
ing spinach,  Nott's  Excelsior  pea,  Burpee's  Green  Pod 
bean.  Early  Bassano  beet,  Ponderosa  tomato  Win- 
ningstadt  cabbage,  Early  Summer  Crookneck  squash, 
Hollow  Crown  parsnip,  Chartier  radish. 

'T  believe,  if  I  should  be  limited  to  only  ten  varie- 
ties," remarks  John  Tye  of  Minnesota,  'T  would  prefer 
onions,  beets,  carrots,  peas,  cabbage,  beans,  tomatoes, 
cucumbers,  lettuce  and  radish,  although  turnips,  celery 


A  GARDEN  SYMPOSIUM  273 

and  a  few  early  potatoes  should  be  in  every  farmer's 
garden/* 

In  his  superb  Missouri  garden,  B.  S.  Rembaugh 
found  this  list  desirable;  Egyptian  beet,  Valentnie 
beans,  Nott's  Excelsior  peas,  Chartier's  radish,  White 
Plum  celery,  Jersey  Wakefield  cabbage,  Maule's  Suc- 
cess tomato,  White  Spine  cucumber.  Country  Gentle- 
man sweet  corn.  Early  Ohio  potato,  Tip-top  musk- 
melon. 

Southern  gardeners  will  note  the  list  of  Mrs.  J.  W. 
Bryan  of  Georgia :  Asparagus,  Conover's  Colossal ; 
beans,  Kentucky  Wonder ;  cauliflower.  Early  Snow- 
ball; burr  artichoke,  Green  Globe;  celery,  White 
Plume ;  okra.  White  Velvet ;  parsnip.  Improved  Guern- 
sey ;  green  pea,  American  Wonder ;  salsify,  Mammoth 
Sandwich ;  tomato,  Paragon. 

A  state  of  Washington  competitor,  A.  C.  Butcher, 
advises  Early  Rose  potato.  Yellow  Danvers  onion,  Rust 
Proof  Golden  Wax  bean,  Fordhook  sweet  corn.  Sure 
Head  cabbage.  Bliss  Everbearing  pea,  Hubbard  squash. 
Hollow  Crown  parsnip,  Denver  Market  lettuce  and 
Purple-top  Strap-leaf  turnip. 

A  good  New  England  list  comes  from  F.  R.  Trask 
of  Massachusetts :  Red  Valentine,  Goddard,  Worces- 
ter Pole  beans  ;  Clipper,  Gradus,  Pride  of  Market  peas  ; 
Corey,  Crosby,  Country  Gentleman,  Stowell  corn ; 
Puritan  tomato,  Hubbard  squash,  Columbia  beet, 
Early  Milan  turnip,  \'ictoria  spinach,  Hanson  lettuce. 

This  list  is  from  New  Jersey:  Hanson  lettuce. 
Early  Turnip  and  Long  Red  radish.  Eclipse  beet,  Ne 
Plus  Ultra  and  Country  Gentleman  sweet  corn,  Win- 
ningstadt  and  Burpee's  Sure  Head  cabbage,  Little  Gem, 
Gradus  and  Telephone  peas,  Flageolet  Wax  and  Bur- 
pee's Dwarf  Lima  bean,  Snowball  cauliflower,  Danvers 
onion. 


274 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


A  few  winners  mention  a  variety  of  vegetable  or 
fruit  which  they  consider  the  most  promising.  Among 
those  mentioned  are  Ponderosa,  Quarter  Century, 
Success  tomato,  Gradus  pea,  Iceberg  lettuce.  Yellow 
Transparent  apple.  Black  Jack  squash.  Self-blanching 
celery,  Scipio    bean,    Kleckley    Sweet    and    Santiago 


HOMESTEAD  OF  A  NEW  YORK  STATE  WINNER 


melons,  the  Idaho  coffee  pea,  Bismarck  apple,  White 
blackberry,  Rocky  Ford  muskmelon.  "I  can  name 
hundreds  that  were  promising  before  I  tried  them," 
observes  one  gardener,  and  the  unwillingness  of  prom- 
inent winners  to  praise  doubtful  novelties  is  in  refresh- 


A  GARDEN  SYMPOSIUM  275 

ing  contrast  to  the  extravagant  talk  of  interested 
seedsmen. 

Most  Desirable  Flozvers. — Sweet  peas  lead  in  the 
replies,  then  come  asters,  pansies,  pinks,  dahlias  and 
petunias.  Nearly  all  replies  mention  sweet  peas.  R. 
J.  Clark  of  Massachusetts  prefers  gladiolus,  dahlia, 
perennial  phlox,  sweet  pea,  petunia,  morning  glory. 

"Roses  in  variety  first,  last  and  all  the  time,"  urges 
Mrs.  L.  A.  Ludwig  of  Kansas,  ''peonies,  gladiolus, 
perennial  phlox,  sweet  pea,  pinks,  pansies — but  it  is 
hard  to  stop  when  there  are  so  many  that  are  best." 
]\Irs.  L.  M.  A.  Hall  of  Connecticut  prefers  roses,  pinks, 
hollyhocks,  petunias,  verbenas,  morning  glory,  gladio- 
lus, asters,  phlox,  sweet  william.  Mrs.  Bale  of  New 
Jersey  chooses  sweet  peas,  nasturtiums,  phlox,  chrys- 
anthemums, roses,  asters.  B.  S.  Higley  of  Ohio,  first 
regular  prize  winner,  and  an  expert  on  floriculture, 
mentions  asters,  dahlias,  gladioli,  nicotina,  stock  (ten 
weeks)  and  sweet  peas. 

Second  Crops. — A  contest  garden  making  a  rather 
poor  showing  all  the  first  part  of  the  season  was  fre- 
quently changed  to  a  very  profitable  enterprise  upon 
adding  the  value  of  the  second  crops.  The  big  returns 
from  some  of  the  best  gardens  were  to  an  important 
extent  the  result  of  making  the  land  do  double 
duty.  Where  the  garden  was  irrigated,  second  crops 
were  usually  grown  to  especial  advantage,  being  largely 
independent  of  the  midsummer  drouth.  Celery  after 
a  great  variety  of  early  crops  proved  an  efifective  money 
maker,  and  is  most  favorably  mentioned  in  the  replies. 
Next  come  cabbages  and  turnips,  both  profitable  crops 
for  market  or  stock. 

Writes  Mrs.  L.  I\I.  A.  Hall :  ''After  each  crop  is 
harvested,  I  sow  turnips  with  rye.  The  best  of  the 
turnips  are  pulled,  then  the  cows  and  hens  have  the 
rest.    The  rve  roots  keep  the  soil  from  washing  in  win- 


276  PRIZE   GARDENING 

ter,  and  after  a  good  growth  in  the  spring  it  is  plowed 
in."  The  above  plan  is  hard  to  excel  for  a  farm  garden 
in  the  north.  Many  gardeners  farther  south  speak  of 
crimson  clover  to  be  sown  in  late  summer  and  plowed 
under  the  next  spring.  Several  find  winter  radishes 
the  best-paying  crop  to  follow  early  peas.  A  Massa- 
chusetts grower  succeeds  in  getting  a  profitable  crop 
of  squashes  after  peas.  Another  succeeds  with  late 
sweet  corn.  Mr.  Hoover  of  Colorado  finds  second 
crop  spinach  or  dandelions  profitable. 

Prize  Bits  of  Experience. — To  the  request  to  state 
the  most  important  bits  of  experience  gained  from  the 
prize  gardens,  a  large  number  mentioned  the  training 
gained  by  keeping  an  accurate  account.  Others  valued 
most  highly  an  increase  in  their  ability  to  appreciate 
a  good  garden.  Many  spoke  of  the  value  of  thorough- 
ness, which  their  work  on  the  prize  gardens  had 
emphasized.  "Painstaking  attention  to  details  and 
to  keeping  accounts"  is  the  way  Mrs.  L.  A.  Ludwig 
sums  it  up. 

Declares  C.  P.  Augur :  'The  most  valuable  infor- 
mation obtained  was  the  knowledge  of  how  valuable  a 
garden  was."  ''To  be  patient,  work  earnestly,  fast  and 
hard  when  the  right  time  comes,"  was  the  lesson  taught 
E.  R.  Flagg.  B.  S.  Higley  concluded  that  "a  garden 
is  more  important  as  giving  fresh  and  desirable  vegeta- 
bles than  as  a  source  of  profit."  Asserts  A.  P.  Edge: 
'T  am  now  satisfied  that  the  garden  is  the  most  valuable 
piece  on  the  farm  in  dollars  and  cents." 

The  value  of  good  seed  and  thorough  cultivation 
was  strongly  impressed  upon  L.  E.  Dimock.  A  great 
source  of  surprise  to  C.  E.  Brookhart  was  the  large  per 
cent  of  the  daily  fare  of  the  family  that  can  be  obtained 
from  a  garden.  It  was  noted  by  W.  P.  Gray  that  a 
surprisingly    large    amount    of    vegetables    could    be 


A  GARDEN  SYMPOSIUM  277 

raised  on  a  small  plot  by  doing  a  little  planning  so  as  to 
get  two  crops  from  the  same  land. 

"No  more  should  be  planted,"  observes  Mrs.  L.  AI. 
A.  Hall,  "than  one  has  room  to  allow  to  grow  to  its 
largest  size  of  perfection,  and  time  to  cultivate  prop- 
erly. It  does  not  pay  to  grow  an  ill-fed,  stunted, 
crowded,  ill-cared-for  plant,  any  more  than  it  does  such 
a  child."  Another  contestant  was  taught  that  "how- 
ever well  one  may  do,  there  is  always  somebody  who 
can  do  better."  B.  S.  Rembaugh  brought  away  the 
idea  that  "it  is  wise  to  always  do  everything  the  very 
best  I  know  how,  regardless  of  circumstances." 

"We  learned  that  the  strongest  plants  only  should 
be  set,  and  the  weaklings  thrown  away,"  says  G.  W. 
Hoover.  Declares  A.  C.  Abrams :  "We  have  ever 
prided  ourselves  on  having  a  good  garden,  and  neigh- 
bors and  friends  have  often  acknowledged  the  fact  that 
we  were  leaders  in  the  van.  But  the  garden  contest 
proved  its  merits  in  a  financial  point  of  view,  thereby 
stimulating  us  to  a  more  thorough  management  of  the 
whole  thing  in  detail.  Our  experience  has  proven  con- 
clusively, not  only  for  a  ten  days'  trial,  but  for  a  whole 
year,  that  vegetables  and  fruit  for  diet  are  much  more 
healthful  and  palatable,  say  nothing  about  the  econ- 
omy, than  so  much  of  the  strong  meat  and  the  king's 
wine." 

"Perhaps  the  most  important  lesson  learned  from 
my  experience  in  the  prize  garden  contest,"  concludes 
W.  K.  Cole,  "was  the  necessity  for  attention  to  details ; 
the  small  things  that  are  so  apt  to  be  overlooked — often 
the  difference  between  failure  and  loss.  Success  and 
profit  depend  upon  these  little  things  and  immediate 
attention.  The  man  or  woman,  boy  or  girl,  who  can 
and  does  do  the  right  thing  at  the  right  time  is  an 
assured  success." 


CHAPTER   XIX 

PRIZE  PICKINGS 

Garden  Bookkeeping. — Some  of  the  account  books, 
while  excellent  as  prize  efforts,  contain  too  much  work 
for  use  every  year.  The  best  practical  books  are  those 
which  are  simple,  yet  enable  the  gardener  to  know  just 
what  he  is  doing.  There  should  be  a  place  for  each 
crop  by  itself  as  well  as  an  account  for  the  garden  as  a 
whole.  All  dates^  costs  and  varieties  should  be  re- 
corded, as  well  as  all  receipts.  It  is  a  convenience  to 
have  all  crops  worked  out  in  acre  terms.  There  should 
be  plenty  of  room  for  jottings,  a  simple  pen  map  or 
chart  of  the  garden  and  an  index  to  pages.  Books 
consisting  of  detachable  sheets  allow  spoiled  sheets  to 
be  removed  and  permit  also  of  the  use  of  a  typewriter. 
A  page  from  an  account  of  this  kind  is  shown  on  Page 
279,  reduced  to  one-third.  It  is  from  the  book  of  H.  B. 
McAfee  of  Missouri,  a  model  piece  of  bookkeeping, 
although  for  other  reasons  not  a  prize  winner.  Both 
in  their  accounts  and  in  letters  written  since,  very  many 
contestants  speak  of  the  great  value  of  a  good  garden 
account,  as  a  guide  for  the  following  year. 

It  is  likewise  of  interest  to  note  that  although  most 
of  the  contestants  were  practical  farmers  or  their  wives, 
the  per  cent  of  well-kept  and  systematic  bookkeeping 
is  quite  a  high  one.  The  contest  was  not  one  of  book- 
keeping, yet  a  large  proportion  of  the  best  gardeners 
know  thoroughly  the  art  of  keeping  accounts  in  ship- 
shape manner. 

Working  the  Soil  and  Crops. — In  planting  and  cul- 
tivating my  garden,  I  have  depended  very  largely  on 


1>RIZE  PICKINGS  279 

my  single  wheel  hoe,  cultivator,  rake  and  plow.  Such 
crops  as  peas,  beans,  etc.,  I  plant  in  very  quick  time 
in  the  following  way:  After  the  ground  has  been  spaded 
and  raked  smooth,  I  make  a  furrow  with  my  plow, 
drop  in  my  seed,  run  the  plow  back  the  other  way  on 

I  then  firm 


the 

ridge 

and 

mv 

seed 

is 

nicelv 

'  cove 

s  a  M  H  A  R  r . 

Cost 

Rec«i*p"t3. 

B  e 

a  a  s 

$11.47 

$32.62 

6*la 
$21.16 


C  a  c  D  «  g  e 


Lettuce 


0    0     13    0     3 


R  a  9  I   3  D  e  s 


p  I  n  a  g  e 


•r  0  •  a  I  0  e  s  flBLD  1)             5.75 

12.49 

e.w 

•       2)             4.98 

39.76 

34.78 

t  Q  r  0   1   p  s                                    5.23 

» 

16.48 

10.25 

Iota  I  8$82.72 

267.40 

$175.40. 

A  CONVENIENT  GARDEN  SUMMARY 

the  earth  down  with  a  hand  hoe  and  my  feet.  I  could 
save  time  here  if  I  had  a  roller.  I  can  plant  in  this  way 
in  one-third  the  time  it  takes  me  with  hand  tools,  and 
do  better  work,  too.  In  cultivating  and  weeding  I 
depend  entirely  on  my  wheel  hoe,  and  know,  by  actual 
test,  that  I  can  do  four  times  the  work  in  an  hour  that 


28o>  PRIZE     GARDENING 

I  can  do  with  old-fashioned  methods.  One  does  not 
have  to  stoop  at  all,  but  can  stand  erect,  while  using 
these  tools. 

After  every  rain  I  went  over  the  whole  garden 
with  the  wheel  hoe,  and  two  or  three  days  later  with 
the  cultivator  or  rake,  so  as  to  keep  the  top  of  the 
ground  loose.  During  the  dry  weather  I  went  over 
the  garden  about  once  a  week.  I  found  I  could  easily 
cover  my  whole  garden  in  about  two  hours,  and  by 
doing  it  as  often  as  I  did  never  had  any  weeds  of  any 
size  to  contend  with. 

Visitors  almost  always  commented  on  this  lack  of 
weeds,  and  thought  I  must  have  spent  lots  of  time 
weeding,  while  I  did  not  consider  that  I  had  done  any 
weeding  at  all.  I  was  simply  keeping  the  ground  in 
proper  condition  to  retain  moisture,  and  in  doing  so 
really  spent  very  little  time.  As  all  the  work  in  this 
garden  was  done  by  myself  in  my  spare  time,  the 
ability  to  do  a  good  deal  of  work  in  a  short  time  is 
quite  important,  and  the  wheel  hoe  has  proved  invalu- 
able as  a  time  saver  in  the  two  years  tliat  I  have  used 
it. —  [Dr.  W.  Y.  Fox,  Massachusetts. 

Take  time  to  thoroughly  prepare  the  ground 
before  planting,  so  that  it  will  be  well  pulverized,  free 
from  sfone  or  rubbish  that  can  clog  the  sower  or 
weeder.  Begin  cultivation  early  and  cultivate  often. 
If  this  is  done  with  the  improved  tools,  but  very  little 
hand  work  will  be  necessary.  Have  a  supply  of  cab- 
bage, cauliflower  and  celery  plants  on  hand,  so  that  if 
any  crop  fails  the  land  will  not  lie  idle.  Keep  tools 
bright  and  sharp.  Do  not  plant  too  thick,  but  give 
plants  room  to  grow.  Plan  to  have  a  succession  of 
fruit  and  vegetables  and  work  your  plan. —  [Andrew 
Kingsbury,  Connecticut. 

I  manure  early,  usually  on  the  March  snow,  and 
freely.     My  rule  is  to  cover  the  snow  out  of  sight,  then 


PRIZE    PICKINGS  281 

scatter  on  a  load  or  two  more  to  fill  possible  bare  spots. 
I  plow  the  first  day  I  find  the  ground  thawed,  and  plow 
deep,  running  twice  over  each  furrow,  the  second  time 
in  the  bottom  of  the  first  furrow.  I  plant  everythijig 
a  little  earlier  than  the  neighbors  think  safe,  and  replant 
if  killed  by  frost.  The  first  day  I  can  see  the  rows  I 
begin  hoeing  and  weeding,  and  keep  it  up  until  haying 
calls  for  all  my  time.  I  endeavor  to  walk  over  the 
garden  so  as  to  see  everything  in  it  every  day,  until  the 
plants  are  well  started  and  can  take  care  of  themselves. 
—  [A.  P.  Hitchcock,  New  York. 

In  planting  my  garden,  I  put  everything  in  rows 
far  enough  apart  to  admit  of  the  horse  cultivator;  the 
rows  all  run  the  long  way  of  the  garden.  As  soon  as 
any  variety  was  planted,  I  at  once  marked  it  with  a 
stake  bearing  the  name  of  the  variety  and  date  of 
planting,  using  painted  plant  labels  tacked  to  pine 
stakes.  The  writing  was  done  with  lead  pencil  and 
remained  perfectly  legible  for  months.  The  planting 
of  all  small  seeds  w-as  done  with  a  combined  hill  and 
drill  seeder  and  cultivator.  This  same  implement  with 
hoes  substituted  for  the  seed  drilling  parts  was  used 
for  cultivating  next  to  the  rows  when  plants  first 
appeared. 

The  soil  can  hardly  be  made  too  rich  for  a  suc- 
cessful garden.  I  want  to  keep  my  plants  on  the  jump 
from  the  time  they  first  appear  until  the  crop  is  ready 
to  gather.  Good  seeds  and  a  rich  soil,  kept  free  from 
weeds  and  mellow  by  frequent  workings,  are  conditions 
which  render  a  good  garden  a  certainty  if  blessed  with 
seasonable  weather  and  rainfall. —  [E.  G.  Packard, 
Delaware. 

I  never  allow  any  weeds  or  rubbish  in  my  garden, 
to  harbor  mice  or  vermin,  but  keep  it  well  cultivated 
and  clean,  and  I  think  that  is  the  way  to  success,  not 
only  in  the  garden  but  on  the  farm.     I  always  manure 


282  PRIZE    GARDENING 

and  plow  my  garden  in  the  fall.  I  think  it  is  much 
better  here,  as  one  is  apt  to  plow  it  when  it  is  too  wet 
if  left  until  spring,  and  this  makes  it  bake  hard  and 
work  up  lumpy  all  summer.  We  can  plant  vegetables 
quite  a  little  earlier,  too,  and  this  alone  is  a  sufficient 
reason  for  plowing  it  in  the  fall. —  [John  Tye, 
Minnesota. 

I  have  gardened  fifteen  years,  but  never  had  a 
garden  so  good  as  the  one  I  had  this  year.  By  putting 
in  the  seed  with  a  drill,  I  got  all  the  seed  in  the  ground 
and  covered  properly;  every  row  straight  and  just  as  I 
wanted  it.  I  can  cultivate  with  a  wheel  hoe  just  as 
fast  as  I  can  walk  over  the  ground. —  [Mrs.  Lizzie 
Snyder,  Oklahoma. 

I  make  a  point  of  going  over  it  with  either  hoe  or 
rake  after  every  shower,  otherwise  it  forms  a  crust  and 
dries  fast.  July  22  it  is  absolutely  free  from  weeds,  I 
believe  not  one  on  the  plot.  Perhaps  it  would  be  better 
if  there  were  more,  then  I  should  have  to  hoe  it  oftener. 
—  [W.  S.  Newcomb,  Vermont. 

My  garden  has  been  the  freest  of  weeds  of  any  field 
I  ever  cultivated  in  the  twenty-five  years  I  have  farmed 
it  here,  proving  to  my  mind  that  our  weed  seeds  are 
grown  and  sown  every  year.  To  test  this  point  still 
further,  on  September  9  I  took  a  basket,  went  in  and 
pulled  up  every  weed  and  bit  of  grass  I  could  find  and 
carried  them  outside  the  field.  I  put  in  five  hours  and 
was  surprised  to  find  so  many  varieties  in  such  a  small 
bulk  of  weeds.  I  noted  the  name  of  every  one  I  knew 
and  found  thirty-four  varieties.  Who  can  tell  us  how 
many  kinds  of  weeds  can  be  counted  on  an  ordinary 
farm? — [W.  D.  Hinds,  Massachusetts. 

In  summing  up  I  would  say,  and  urge  the  im- 
portance of  it,  keep  the  garden  free  from  weeds.  Do 
not  try  to  do  too  much.  The  greatest  mistake  I  have 
made  in  my  gardening  has  been  in  trying  to  do  too 


PRIZE    PICKINGS  283 

much.  Had  I  planted  less  and  tended  it  better,  my 
success  would  have  been  greater.  A  small  garden 
well  tilled  is  far  better  than  a  large  one  overgrown  with 
weeds.  My  fruit  and  vegetable  garden  has  been  kept 
clean,  but  the  onion  and  beet  patch  were  badly 
neglected. —  [N.  C.  Kneeland,  Minnesota. 

Using  the  Wheel  Implements, — The  value  of  these 
new  garden  implements,  the  improved  wheel  hoes, 
drills,  markers,  coverers,  cultivators,  etc.,  w^as  empha- 
sized throughout  the  accounts,  particularly  by  those 
who  tried  them  for  the  first  time,  and  the  conclusion  is 
evident  that  a  garden  without  good  wheel  implements 
cannot  begin  to  compete  in  the  economy  of  operation 
with  one  properly  equipped.  Only  a  few  are  quoted 
from  scores  of  opinions  to  this  effect: 

The  Anti-clog  weeder  does  splendid  work,  kills 
nearly  all  weeds  and  leaves  the  soil  fine  and  in  excellent 
condition  to  retain  moisture. —  [A.  L.  Coffin,  Maine. 

Lacking  a  wheel  hand  hoeing  machine,  I  put  the 
broad  sweeps  on  my  horse  hoe  and  tried  the  experi- 
ment of  pushing  it  by  hand,  while  the  plants  were 
small.  With  judicious  setting  of  the  wheel  and  patience 
in  learning  the  proper  way  to  hold  the  handles,  I  found 
I  could  clean  out  the  weeds  between  the  rows  two  feet 
apart  or  less  to  within  an  inch  of  the  plants,  do  it  as 
easily  as  with  a  hoe,  and  about  seven  times  as  fast.  I 
don't  suppose  it  was  so  handy  as  a  special  garden  tool, 
but  it  worked. —  [A.  P.  Hitchcock,  New  York. 

It's  only  fun  to  garden  with  the  wheel  garden 
tools.  Xo  more  backaches  and  bad  tempers. —  [Mrs. 
Hattie  Ferguson,  Alaine. 

If  the  garden  is  properly  laid  out  and  planned, 
little  hand  work  is  required.  I  lay  out  the  rows  far 
enough  apart  to  work  a  horse  cultivator  between  them, 
using  a  twelve-tooth  cultivator.  I  can  run  it  so  close 
to  the  rows  that  but  little  hoeing  is  needed.     Of  course 


PRIZE    PICKINGS  285 

everything  has  to  be  thinned  out  later  in  the  season, 
and  the  weeds  have  to  be  cut  out  or  pulled  where  you 
cannot  run  the  cultivator. —  [C.  L.  Russell,  Vermont. 

I  think  the  wheel  hoe  alone  a  more  serviceable  tool 
in  the  garden  than  the  combined  drill  and  hoe,  in  that 
the  wheels  are  larger  and  the  connecting  arm  higher. 
The  boys  are  sure  they  can  do  more  work  with  it  and 
do  it  easier. —  [Charles  Pierson  Augur,   Connecticut. 

We  first  run  the  double  wheel  hoe,  allowing  the 
wheels  to  straddle  the  row,  thus  taking  out  all  the 
weeds  in  the  row  between  the  rows  and  leaving  only 
about  two  inches  in  the  row,  which  we  finish  by  hand. 
—  [E.  Elton,  Nebraska. 

I  believe  the  crop  would  have  been  almost  a  total 
failure,  like  some  of  our  neighbors',  had  we  not  used 
a  weeder,  which  stirred  the  surface  of  the  soil,  forming 
a  mulch  and  arresting  evaporation  and  conserving 
moisture  for  the  plants.  We  also  owe  much  to  this 
valuable  tool  in  most  all  parts  of  the  garden.  I  con- 
sider the  wheel  hoe  to  a  hand  hoe  what  the 
mowing  machine  is  to  a  scythe. —  [L.  E.  Burnham, 
Massachusetts. 

My  time  spent  in  work  must  have  been  far  more 
were  it  not  for  the  wheel  hoe  used  before  the  weeds 
had  a  chance  to  start. —  [Mrs.  L.  M.  A.  Hall, 
Connecticut. 

I  used  an  old  gate  to  drag  over  the  top  of  potato 
rows  as  the  potatoes  were  coming  up.  It  killed  the 
weeds  without  much  harm  to  the  potatoes. —  [H.  E. 
Hale,  New  Jersey. 

Garden  Conveniences. — I  use  a  homemade  marker 
w^hen  I  want  to  sow  only  a  few  seeds  or  to  set  out 
plants.  It  is  made  from  one  and  one-half  by  three-inch 
stuff,  four  feet  long.  In  this  a  pole  from  the  woods  is 
firmly  fixed  for  a  handle  by  boring  a  one  and  one-half,- 
inch  hole  at  the  center  through  the  scantling.     The  end 


286  PRIZE     GARDENING 

of  the  pole  is  sharpened  enough  to  go  through  the  hole 
and  then  wedged  behind  to  keep  it  from  drawing  out. 
It  is  also  braced  with  a  piece  of  lath  from  each  end  of 
the  scantling.  Pieces  of  lath  one  foot  long  are  sharp- 
ened and  nailed  firmly  to  the  back  of  the  scantling,  so 


that  one  side  makes  drills  one  foot  apart  and  the  other 
side  sixteen  inches. —  [W.  H.  Pillow,  New  York. 

Protection  from  Ciitzvorms. — Fold  old  newspapers 
and  cut  into  sheets,  say  nine  by  twelve  inches.  Paint 
with  cheap,  quick-drying  black  paint  or  waterproof 
varnish.  Sticky  paper  covered  with  rosin  and  sweet 
oil  will  answer  for  one  season.  Cut  the  sheets  from 
edge  to  center.     The  plant  being  set,   slip  a  paper 


around  it  and  place  a  clod  or  stone  on  the  lapped  edges 
of  the  slit  near  the  plant  and  otherwise  secure  it  against 
winds.  This  will  flare  the  edges,  cast  water  to  the 
center,  let  air  under  to  prevent  mold  and  yet  is  dark 
and  retains  moisture.     The  grub  prefers  the  ground  on 


PRIZE    PICKINGS  287 

which  10  travel  and  will  not  attempt  to  crawl  onto  the 
paper.  The  papers  if  properly  cared  for  will  last  for 
a  number  of  years,  and  can  be  safely  taken  away  from 
the  plant  in  a  week  or  ten  days. —  [Dr.  ]\I.  W.  Strealy, 
Pennsylvania. 

Alost  vegetable  growers  and  also  those  who  raise 
flowers  are  often  greatly  annoyed  by  the  cutworm  at 
transplanting  time.  An  entire  garden  set  with  young 
plants  may  be  practically  devastated  in  a  few  nights 
by  this  worm.  Being  a  hidden  enemy,  it  is  all  the 
more  difficult  to  control.  A^Minnesota  gardener  writes  : 


-rr-j^g 


I  have  found  the  device  shown  at  a  in  the  illustra- 
tion very  successful  in  keeping  cutworms  from  injuring 
my  garden.  The  pest  cuts  off  the  young  plants  just 
above  the  ground  during  the  night.  To  prevent  this, 
take  any  kind  of  paper,  preferably  a  stiff  wrapping 
paper  used  at  grocery  stores,  cut  a  strip  about  three 
inches  wide  and  as  long  as  is  required  to  wrap  two  or 
three  times  around  the  stem  of  t\ie  plant,  leaving 
enough  space  for  development.  Make  the  hole  in  the 
ground,  put  in  the  plant  and  then  enough  soil  to  cover 
the  fibrous  roots.  Wrap  the  paper  around  the  stem 
and  fill  in  with  soil  both  inside  and  out  so  that  one- 
half  the  paper  will  be  below  the  surface  and  half  above, 


288  PRIZE     GARDENING 

as  shown  in  the  illustration.  The  plant  will  then  not 
be  injured  by  the  cutworm.  I  have  treated  cabbage 
and  tomato  plants  in  this  way  and  have  not  lost  one. 
I  do  not  know  how  successful  this  would  be  in  the 
market  garden,  but  in  my  own  private  plot  it  has 
worked  to  perfection. 

I  have  been  informed  that  by  planting  a  few  castor 
beans  here  and  there  in  the  garden  the  cutworms  will 
be  destroyed.  A  lady  friend  planted  a  few  of  these 
on  the  south  side  of  her  pansy  bed  as  a  protection  from 
the  sun,  and  she  found  that  she  had  accomplished  more 
than  she  had  intended,  for  in  the  morning  when  she 
went  to  look  at  her  flowers  she  found  numbers  of  cut- 
worms dead  on  the  top  of  the  ground.  It  is  thought 
that  the  worms  eat  the  roots  of  the  castor  bean  and  find 
them  fatal.     The  great  objection  to  this  plan  is  that 


the  bean  grows  so  rank  and  casts  so  much  shade  that 
it  is  injurious  to  other  plants. 

The  Little  Point  Hoe  is  an  implement  made  espe- 
cially for  us  women  to  use  by  my  uncle,  who  took  a 
common  hoe  which  had  one  side  of  the  blade  broken 
off,  and  cut  the  other  side  off,  leaving  a  blade  about 
two  inches  wide.  This  has  been  worn  by  constant  use 
till  only  the  midrib  of  the  hoe  is  left,  which  is  worn  to 
a  point.  In  the  hands  of  an  energetic  woman  it  is  a 
most  efficient  tool  for  destroying  weeds,  loosening  soil 
and  working  close  to  any  plant  desired. —  [Una 
Eugenie  Knight,  New  York. 

A  Handy  Tool. — The  cut  above  shows  a  weeder 
made  from  inch  hoop  iron,  described  by  R.  J.  Clark  of 
Massachusetts,  who  has  a  pair  of  them  that  he  has  used 


PRIZE    PICKINGS  289 

several  seasons.     Use  one  in  each  hand.     They  are 
cheap  and  effective. 

A  Long-handled  Wccdcr.—l  have  used  a  long- 
handled,  diamond-shaped  weeder  in  my  work  in  the 
garden.  The  handle  is  about  three  and  one-half  feet 
long,  or  long  enough  so  that  I  can  stand  upright  and 
use  the  weeder,  which  I  find  very  satisfactory  for  the 
work  given  over  to  it.  The  weeder  part  is  made 
diamond-shaped  out  of  a  piece  of  thin  steel,  and  firmly 
fixed  to  the  handle.  It  is  the  best  hand  weeder  I  ever 
used.  This  is  the  testimony  of  John  Costello  of  Coos 
county,  New  Hampshire,  who  has  had  much  practical 
experience  in  garden  work. 

Markers. — I  mark  rows  cither  sixteen,  twenty- 
four  or  thirty-six  inches  apart.  For  the  latter  class 
the  corn  marker  serves;  for  the  others  I  simply  nail 
three  or  four  small  stovewood  sticks  on  a  piece  of  old 
scantling,  rounding  the  marking  ends  a  bit,  and  two 
bean  poles  nailed  to  the  top  make  thills  to  draw  it  by. 
It  takes  ten  minutes  to  make  one,  and  I  find  it  simpler 
to  make  a  new  one  each  year,  use  it  and  knock  it  to 
pieces,  than  to  preserve  it. 

Lime  Sifter. — To  sprinkle  air-slaked  lime  on  vines, 
etc.,  I  put  a  peck  or  so  in  a  coarse  burlap  bran  sack. 
Two  or  three  jerks  over  a  hill  covers  it  with  the  fine 
dust. —  [A.  P.  Hitchcock,  New  York. 

A  Roller  Remodeled. — I  had  a  hand  roller,  or  in 
other  words  a  man-killer,  tw^enty  inches  in  diameter 
and  thirty-six  inches  long.  I  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  if  properly  fitted  up  it  would  be  better  adapted  to 
animal  power  than  human.  So  out  of  some  lumber  I 
had,  I  made  a  frame  and  shafts  combined.  Sawed  one 
of  the  two-by-fours  in  the  center,  making  two  pieces 
two  by  two,  twelve  feet  long.  The  other  two-by-four 
I  sawed  into  four  pieces.  Three  pieces  1  used  for 
crossbars;  the  fourth  piece  of  two-by-four  I  sawed  in 


290 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


the  center,  making  two  pieces  eighteen  inches  long. 
Made  journal  boxes  out  of  these  and  fastened  them 
firmly  to  the  lower  side  of  shaft  fiame.  The  three 
two-by-four  pieces  I  used  for  crossbars,  cutting  a 
tenon  on  the  end  of  each  an  inch  deep,  two  and  three- 
fourths  inches  long;  then  I  bored  six  three-eighths- 
inch  holes  through  same  pieces,  also  through  shafts, 
bolting  them  firmly  together.  Then  nailed  short  pieces 
across  the  shafts  in  diagonal  position  about  a  foot  long, 
making  them  very  rigid.  The  rod  that  ran  through 
the  center  of  rollers  was  too  short  for  the  shafts.     Had 


^**Se^ 


STONE  BOAT  AND  VINE  SUPPORT 

a  blacksmith  weld  three  inches  on  the  same.  When  this 
was  done,  connected  shafts  and  rollers,  which  worked 
admirably.  Fixed  a  seat  on  same  and  then  went  to 
work. —  [B.  S.  Rembaugh,  Missouri. 

Stone  Boat  and  Vine  Support. — A  New  York  state 
gardener  sends  drawing  of  a  stone  boat,  which  proved 
handy  when  the  land  was  to  be  cleared  off  after  plow- 
ing and  harrowing.  It  is  as  simple  as  possible,  the 
runners  being  made  of  sticks  with  a  natural  bend.     A 


PRIZE    PICKINGS  291 

sketch  of  a  rough  and  ready  support  for  vines  comes 
from  the  same  source.  The  stakes  are  from  tree  brush, 
to  which  is  fastened  a  single  wire. 

Best  Time  to  Work  the  Garden. — Cuhivating  and 
hoeing  in  the  early  morning  when  the  dew  is  on  the 
earth  is  far  preferable  to  doing  it  in  the  heat  of  the  day. 
I  arise  at  four  o'clock  and  breakfast  at  six  in  the  sum- 
mer season.  In  the  meantime  I  devote  from  one-half  to 
two  hours  in  the  garden,  hoeing,  weeding,  cultivating 
and  gathering  cool,  crisp  radishes,  lettuce,  cucumbers, 
peas,  beans,  squash,  beets,  etc.,  for  the  morning  and 
noontime  meals.  Vegetables  gathered  when  the  dew 
is  on  them  are  of  the  finest  quality.  Early  to  bed,  early 
to  rise,  gives  a  good  appetite  for  breakfast,  and  adds 
days  to  our  lives. —  [L.  E.  Dimock,  Connecticut. 

Hand  IVeeder. — I  have  a  patent  device  which 
makes  the  work  a  little  harder  and  slower  than  without 
it.  So  I  broke  a  foot  of¥  the  point  of  an  old  scythe, 
bent  two  inches  of  the  top  at  right  angles,  sideways, 
hammered  the  edge  of  the  rest  down,  wrapped  it  in  a 
rag  for  a  handle,  and  found  it  very  useful  in  some  cases. 
But  thumbs  and  fingers  must  do  most  of  the  fine  work. 
~[A.  P.  Hitchcock,  New  York. 

Clean  Digging. — We  have  found  that  for  a  small 
acreage,  a  fork  is  the  most  economical  instrument  with 
which  to  dig  potatoes,  because  the  plow  or  potato 
digger  covers  a  great  many  which  can  never  be  found. 
Do  not  put  potatoes  in  the  cellar  until  seasoned. —  [A. 
Brackett,  Minnesota. 

The  potatoes  were  dug  by  turning  a  light  furrow 
from  either  side  of  the  row,  and  then  raking  over  the 
center  with  the  potato  hook.  This  method  is  used  here 
more  than  any  other.  As  yet  no  potato  digger  has 
been  found  that  does  its  work  satisfactorily. — [Charles 
P.  Augur,  Connecticut. 


292 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


Scaring  the  Birds. — As  the  garden  was  at  a  little 
distance  from  the  house,  scarecrows  became  necessary 
when  the  corn  began  to  appear  above  the  surface  of 
the  ground.  Those  used  were  made  from  a  potato 
stuck  full  of  the  wing  and  tail  feathers  removed  from 
poultry  strangled  for  market  or  home  use.  A  stout 
string  about  three  feet  long  was  tied  around  the  potato 
and  it  was  then  suspended  from  the  end  of  a  bean  pole 
or  fishing  rod  stuck  in  the  ground  among  the  corn.  It 
takes  less  time  to  prepare  one  of  these  "potato  birds" 
than  to  shoot  a  crow,  and  when  suspended  in  the  field 
they  appear  to  serve  an  equally  good  purpose. —  [E.  R. 
Flagg,  Massachusetts. 

Plant  Boxes. — Gardening  operations  require  a 
great  number  of  boxes.     These  may  be  without  top  or 


bottom,  to  be  used  with  mosquito  netting  as  protectors 
for  squash,  melon  and  cucumber  plants,  or  with  bot- 
toms for  use  in  starting  plants  early  in  the  season. 
To  make  such  boxes  or  protectors,  by  wholesale,  follow 
the  plan  shown  in  the  cut.  Take  four  wide  boards  and 
nail  them  firmly  together  as  shown.  Then  saw  off  the 
boxes  as  is  also  suggested.  They  are  now  in  shape  for 
protectors.  If  boxes  are  needed,  nail  on  bottom 
boards.— [W.  D. 

Tomato  vines  were  allowed  to  climb  an  upright 
trellis  of  wire  netting.  They  needed  but  little  tying 
and  yielded  better  than  those  on  poles  or  tied  to 
stakes  or  trailing  on  the  ground. —  [A.  E.  Lathrop, 
Massachusetts. 


PRIZE    PICKINGS  293 

Making  Plants  Live. — If  the  season  is  a  dry  one,  it 
is  a  good  plan  to  insert  near  the  newly-set  plant  an  old 
fruit  can  with  several  small  holes  punched  in  the 
bottom,  and  keep  it  full  of  water. — W.  McDermott, 
New  York. 

Points  on  Potash. — Last  season  I  did  not  know 
exactly  how  to  use  ashes,  and  proceeded  to  experiment 
with  various  garden  crops  on  a  sandy  soil,  clay  bottom, 
southeast  slope.  On  one  strip  I  spread  broadcast 
unleached  hardwood  ashes  at  the  rate  of  about  five 
pecks  per  square  rod,  or  some  two  hundred  bushels 
per  acre,  and  on  another  strip  half  that  amount.  Above 
and  below  these  strips  I  put  none  at  all.  In  this  field 
in  rows  north  and  south  and  crosswise  the  strips,  I 
planted  potatoes,  sw^eet  corn,  sugar  beets,  watermelons, 
muskmelons,  tomatoes  and  sunflowers.  Each  strip 
was  treated  in  exactly  the  same  way  in  every  respect 
except  for  the  ashes,  which  were  put  on  early  in  May. 

The  corn,  potatoes  and  melons  were  all  much 
better  where  the  ashes  were  applied,  but  not  much  dif- 
ference was  noted  between  results  of  the  large  and  the 
small  amounts.  The  sugar  beets  grew  the  same  size 
on  both  strips  of  ashes,  but  where  none  was  put  on  the 
beets  w^ere  only  half  as  large,  although  richer  in  sugar. 

With  tomatoes  best  results  were  obtained  on  the 
strip  where  the  smaller  amount  of  ashes  was  applied. 
Too  much  was  worse  than  none,  as  it  caused  an  exces- 
sive growth  of  vine  and  a  vast  number  of  worthless 
small  tomatoes.  I  should  now  use  two  pecks  to  the 
rod.  The  sunflowers  did  not  show  a  clear  enough  dif- 
ference to  report,  but  I  think  the  ashes  helped  them. 
In  another  place  I  had  a  patch  of  onions  and  these  were 
very  much  improved  by  one  hundred  bushels  ashes  per 
acre,  the  difference  being  at  the  rate  of  about  three  to 
two  in  favor  of  the  ashe§. 


294 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


Summing  up,  I  found  that  nearly  everything  I 
tried  the  ashes  on  was  benefited  by  the  apphcation, 
but  that  the  smaller  amount  was  as  good  and  in  some 
cases  better  than  the  larger.  As  ashes  draw  moisture 
and  tend  to  bind  the  particles  of  sandy  soil  together, 
they  serve  to  help  resist  drouth  under  good  cultivation. 
—  [R.  M.  Dunlap. 

In  a  large  box  I  first  placed  two  inches  of  leached 
wood  ashes.  Over  this  I  spread  a  layer  of  wheat  bran, 
packing  it  down  with  a  maul.  I  continued  until  the 
box  was  full.  The  box  was  allowed  to  stand  for  two 
months,  when  the  contents  were  stirred  up  and  applied 
to  a  field.  It  proved  as  valuable  a  fertilizer  as  barn- 
yard manure  or  commercial  fertilizer.  It  can  be  made 
at  a  cost  of  forty  to  fifty  cents  per  one  hundred  pounds. 
It  can  be  drilled  in  or  applied  by  hand.  For  wheat  it 
has  no  equal. —  [W.  A.  Kimble. 

In  my  experience,  all  valley  land  or  land  subject 
to  waste  lacks  potash. —  [J.  L.,  New  York. 

Two  teaspoonfuls  potash  to  one  and  one-half 
gallons  water  will  kill  the  pea  aphis  without  injury 
to  the  plants. —  [C.  P.  Augur,  Connecticut. 

Special  Remedies. — With  my  tomatoes  there  were 
some  that  seemed  to  be  dying,  and  on  examination  I 
found  a  small  mite  or  scale  on  the  under  side  of  the 
leaf  that  looked  very  much  like  a  flake  of  bran.  I 
pulled  up  the  worst  ones  and  carried  them  away  to 
burn,  then  I  sprayed  the  rest  with  coal  oil  emulsion, 
at  a  strength  of  one  gallon  of  oil  to  forty-five  gallons 
of  water  and  one  pound  of  Russian  soap.  It  seemed 
to  kill  nearly  all  the  scales.  I  had  to  turn  the  plants 
over  so  I  could  get  at  the  under  side  of  the  leaves. — 
[P.  H.  Sheridan,  Colorado. 

Here  hangs  my  knapsack  sprayer,  which  with  me 
has  entirely  superseded  my  old  hand  and  foot  force 
pump  sprayer.     This  little  rubber  bulb  spray  throws 


PRIZE    PICKINGS  295 

the  material  eight  or  ten  feet  high,  so  that  the  tops  of 
all  my  grapes  and  gooseberries  are  easily  reached. 

With  a  whitewash  brush  we  smeared  all  the 
grapevines  from  the  ground  to  the  outer  ends  of  the 
stems  with  the  blue  vitriol  solution,  with  enough  lime 
in  it  to  show  quite  white.  We  also  did  the  trunks  of 
all  the  young  trees,  clearing  away  the  soil  slightly  and 
extending  up  beyond  the  first  crotch. —  [F.  J.  Bell, 
New  Jersey. 

Poles  and  Brush. — I  cut  my  bean  poles  when  get- 
ting wood  in  the  winter,  and  sharpen  them,  leaving 
them  handy  to  the  garden.  I  bring  down  my  pea 
brush  also  on  top  of  the  wood,  sharpen  and  trim  them 
and  put  them  in  small  heaps  with  a  weight  on  them, 
so  they  will  flatten  out  and  be  in  shape  to  set  better  in 
the  rows.  Much  time  and  hurry  is  saved  by  doing 
this  work  in  winter  and  having  everything  ready  when 
the  plants  require  it. —  [C.  E.  K.,  Connecticut. 

Experience  has  taught  us  that  pinching  back  the 
vines  causes  them  to  bear  twice  the  amount  of  melons. 
—  [L.  C.  Wright,  x\ew  York. 

Mistakes. — The  season  seems  too  short  for  brush 
lima  beans.  We  shall  not  plant  potatoes  between  rhu- 
barb rows,  as  they  receive  too  much  shade.  We  should 
have  provided  the  tomatoes  with  a  trellis. —  [Miss  Bar- 
bara Brown,  Indiana. 

The  Struggle  That  Wins. — This  bit  of  biography 
by  a  New  Hampshire  prize  winner,  A.  E.  Ross,  shows 
of  what  stuff  successful  contestants  are  made :  "I 
remained  at  home  till  I  was  twenty-one  and  then  went 
to  work  for  one  of  my  neighbors,  and  continued  to 
work  out  until  1889.  When  in  search  of  a  place 
where  I  could  get  more  money,  I  came  to  Somersworth 
and  entered  the  Great  Falls  Manufacturing  company. 
I  went  into  the  dress  room,  where  I  soon  learned,  and 
by  steady  habits  I  soon  secured  one  of  the  best  jobs 


296 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


there,  which  paid  ten  dollars  a  week.  About  this 
time  I  married  a  lady  who  worked  in  the  card  room. 
It  was  our  aim  from  the  first  to  get  us  a  home.  We 
commenced  by  saving  every  cent  that  we  could.   When 


PICKING  PEAS  FOR  DINNER 


we  had  one  thousand  dollars  we  went  to  Taunton, 
Massachusetts,  and  looked  at  several  places,  but  saw 
nothing  that  we  wanted.  We  came  back  and  went  to 
work.  Soon  we  saw  the  advertisement  of  the  place  we 
now  call  home.    We  found  it  would  take  two  thousand 


PRIZE    PICKINGS  297 

dollars  to  buy  it.  We  paid  one  thousand  dollars 
down  and  gave  our  notes  for  two  hundred  dollars  a 
year,  with  the  privilege  of  paying  up  as  fast  as  we 
could.  The  mortgage  was  at  the  rate  of  five  per  cent. 
At  the  end  of  three  and  one-half  years  we  had  paid 
the  balance,  bought  teams  and  furniture.  Still  we  kept 
at  work  in  the  mill  until  we  had  enough  to  buy  all  the 
tools  and  do  all  the  repairing  necessary.  My  wife 
has  worked  in  the  shop  until  now  and  has  quite  a  neat 
bank  account  to  her  name." 

Solid  Comfort. — I  consider  my  garden  has  been 
a  paying  investment  because  of  the  pleasure  in  caring 
for  it  and  the  luxury  of  vegetables  on  our  table,  even 
without  any  other  profit. —  [L.  E.  Burnham,  Massa- 
chusetts. 

If  enjoying  anything  is  of  any  account,  the  gar- 
den has  paid  beyond  expectation.  It  could  be  made 
more  pleasurable  another  year  by  having  greater 
variety  of  products. —  [Charles  Cooledge,  New  York. 
There  are  some  things  that  do  not  pay  so  far  as 
money  goes,  but  which  give  returns  that  money  cannot 
buy,  and  one  of  these  things  is  the  pleasure  of  seeing 
things  grow  and  mature  their  fruit,  and  knowing  that 
your  work  brought  it  to  pass. —  [R.  L.  Porter, 
Massachusetts. 

Our  garden  has  been  a  source  of  pleasure  as  well 
as  wonder  to  us  and  our  friends,  that  so  much  could  be 
grown  on  such  a  tiny  little  spot.  A  row  of  Caprice 
nasturtiums  fifty  feet  long  in  their  gorgeous  beauty  for 
a  fence  on  one  side,  and  a  row  of  squash  vines, 
trimmed  back,  with  their  wealth  of  fruit  on  the  other, 
and  the  rows  of  cabbage  and  Brussels  sprouts  separated 
by  rows  of  scarlet  peppers  and  tomatoes,  with  the  dark 
red  foliage  of  the  beets  and  the  feathery  carrots  made 
a  beautiful  fall  picture.  We  counted  at  one  time  fifteen 
distinct  colorings  and  markings,  from  pale  yellow  to 


PRIZE    PICKINGS  299 

the  darkest  crimson  blossoms,  on  our  nasturtium  vines, 
while  the  foliage  was  a  combination  of  light  and  dark, 
making  the  plants  very  attractive.  Just  the  variety  for 
the  window  box  or  for  anyone  who  has  little  space. — 
[S.  L.  Parker,  Massachusetts. 

If  I  had  bought  the  produce  at  wholesale  prices, 
the  time  spent  to  go  after  it  would  more  than  equal  the 
time  spent  in  my  garden.— [G.  V.  Dewey,  Tennessee. 

I  place  more  value  on  the  garden  than  the  figures 
show.  Vegetables  should  be  on  every  farmer's  table, 
fresh  and  sweet. —  [C.  E.  Deets,  Iowa. 

We  have  not  been  without  flowers  for  our  table 
and  sitting  room  from  July  to  November  i.  They  have 
been  given  to  friends  and  used  for  church  decoration. 
It  adds  to  the  pleasures  of  a  garden  to  have  also  all 
small  fruits  suited  to  the  climate,  and  herbs,  pie  plant 
and  all  vegetables.— [Marcia  H.  Howlett,  Wisconsin. 

We  aimed  to  keep  as  accurate  account  of  time 
spent  as  possible,  and  have  been  surprised  that  the 
number  of  days  of  ten  hours  each  have  been  so  few. — 
[Miss  Mary  Oilman,  New  York. 

TJic  Family  Garden.— A  good  gardener  and  true 
lover  of  country  life  and  work  is  not  repaid  in  dollars 
and  cents  alone.  Writes  L.  E.  Dimock  of  Connecticut: 
Dry  figures  can  never  reveal  the  hopes,  the  fears,  the 
pleasure  and  the  trials,  that  make  the  family  garden 
indispensable  to  the  perfect  enjoyment  of  farm  life. 
I  say  our  garden,  because,  while  nearly  all  the  labor  in 
it  was  performed  by  myself,  yet  for  the  whole  family 
the  garden  is  always  a  place  of  absorbing  interest.  The 
madam  likes  to  stroll  there  in  the  twilight  hours;  the 
married  daughter,  with  a  home  and  a  garden  of  her 
own,  delights  in  wandering  through  its  green  mazes 
frequently  and  make  comparisons  with  the  garden  at 
her  own  home.  The  son,  deep  in  the  knotty  problems 
of  Coke  or  Blackstone,  has  visions  of  the  home  garden 


300 


PRIZE  GARDENING 


rise  before  him,  and  straightway  he  makes  a  pilgrimage 
to  its  cool  shade  and  its  sunny  avenues,  and  forgets  the 
law  in  eager  comparison  of  varieties  of  lettuce,  or  in 
noting  the  swelling  of  incipient  melons.  The  children 
love  it  from  the  burying  of  seed  in  the  warm  earth  to 
the  gathering  of  the  harvest.  Their  eager  feet  are  ever 
treading  its  pathways  and  their  eager  hands  are  ever 
ready  to  assist  in  its  care.  There  are  other  partners. 
The  birds  and  the  bees  are  there,  bless  them.  Even 
the  chickens  feel  they  are  entitled  to  help. 

Garden  work  was  recreating  and  was  performed 
at  odd  moments,  when  resting  from  the  regular  routine 
of  farm.  work.  Who  can  have  the  sordidness  to  claim 
that  the  crisp,  tender,  toothsome  dainties  furnished  for 
the  home  table,  or  sent  as  a  present  to  a  friend,  can  be 
adequately  represented  by  a  few  pence  set  down  in  a 
dailv  account? 


FINIS 


PRIZE  WINNERS 


Lester  C.  Wright 
was  born  in  Oswego,  New  York,  December  i,  1849. 
He  attended  the  public  schools  of  that  city  and  the 
Oswego  high  school,  and  then  studied  law,  intending  to 
be  admitted  to  the  bar.  When  his  hearing  began  to  fail 
him  he  gave  up  law,  and  for  the  past  twenty  years  had 


I..  C.  AND  FRED  P.  WRIGHT 


been  engaged  in  market  gardening  at  Oswego  Center, 
about  three  miles  from  Oswego  City.  Mr.  Wright 
had  the  reputation  of  being  one  of  the  foremost 
gardeners  in  Oswego  county.  He  was  the  originator  of 
the  Early  Leader  tomato,  introduced  some  years  ago. 
Alany  people  from  Oswego  visited  his  garden  each 
year,  and  it  was  always  a  pleasure  with  him  to  explain 
his  plans  and  methods  of  culture. 


302 


PRIZE  GARDENING 


His  death,  which  occurred  on  June  4,  1900,  was 
mourned  by  a  large  circle  of  friends  and  acquaintances, 
as  he  was  taken  sick  while  at  work  in  the  garden  and 
died  after  a  short  illness  of  six  days. 

Fred  P.  Wright 
was  born  in  Oswego,  New  York,  in  1880,  and  has  worked 
at  market  gardening  for  the  past  seven  years.  Under 
the  able  instruction  of  the  senior  member  of  the  firm, 
L.  C.  Wright,  he  has  become  one  of  the  leading  young 
gardeners  of  this  vicinity.  During  the  past  seasons  of 
1900  and  1901,  he  successfully  carried  on  the  market 
gardening  business  as  before  his  father's  death. 


MR.  AND  MRS.  A.  T.  GIAUQUE 

A  native  of  Ohio,  Mr.  Giauque  has  been  twenty- 
seven  years  a  resident  of  southeastern  Iowa,  and  has 
been  actively  identified  with  affairs  about  him.  He 
was  twenty  years  a  resident  of  Nebraska.  For  forty 
years  he  was  a  member  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
church,  and  was  a  soldier  for  the  Union  during  the 


PRIZE    WINNERS 


303 


Civil  war.  He  is  in  his  fifty-eighth  year,  having  been 
a  farmer  since  he  was  sixteen  years  of  age,  when  his 
father  moved  to  a  farm,  leaving  it  mainly  to  the  care  of 
himself  and  a  brother  two  years  younger.  Possessed 
of  an  exuberant  enthusiasm,  Air.  Giauque  always 
enters  heartily  into  any  scheme  for  securing  better 
methods  and  higher  standards  in  the  calling  of  his 
choice.  Ambitious  always  to  have  a  good  garden,  he 
has  usually  had  one,  when  it  has  been  possible  in  that 
dry  climate. 

Brainard  S.  Higley 
was  born  on  a   farm   in  Windham,   Portage  county, 
Ohio,  of  New  England  ancestors,  September  i,  1637, 


B.  S.  HIGLEY 


and  has  always  resided  in  Ohio.  Nearly  his  whole  life 
has  been  passed  in  that  part  of  Ohio  known  as  the  Con- 
necticut Western  Reserve.  Until  he  was  twelve  years 
of  age  he  attended  country  schools — most  of  the  time 
at  one  held  in  a  log  cabin.  At  the  age  of  twelve  his 
parents  moved  to  a  nearby  village,  where  he  prepared 


304 


PRIZE     GARDENING 


for  college  in  a  select  school.  In  1855  he  entered  West- 
ern Reserve  College,  from  which  he  graduated  in  1859 
with  the  third  honor  in  his  class.  He  studied  law  in 
Cleveland,  Ohio,  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  July, 
i860.  He  was  married  to  Miss  Isabella  R.  Stevens 
(who  still  survives),  January  i,  1861. 

Mr.  Higley,  born  and  reared  on  a  farm,  always 
took  great  interest  in  agriculture,  and  since  marriage 
always  had  a  garden.  Part  of  his  life  his  professional 
and  business  duties  were  so  engrossing  that  he  could 
give  his  garden  little  personal  attention  ;  but  the  garden 
V/3S  invariably  the  most  charming  place  for  him  when 
he  could  be  in  it.  Beginning  April,  i,  1898,  he  has  de- 
voted his  entire  time  to  his  lawns  and  garden,  and  a 
neater,  better  kept  and  more  attractive  garden  will  be 
hard  to  find  anywhere.  He  keeps  a  close  record  of  his 
doings  and  the  results,  whereby  from  year  to  year  he 
can  see  and  recall  his  mistakes,  successes  and  the  out- 
come of  all  his  experiments  and  work. 


INDEX 


PAGE 

Ashes  for  the  Garden 293 

Asparagus    35 

Atwood  A.  A.,   Sketch  of 51 

Tomatoes  of 218 

Avery  Estella,  Home  Garden  of.  125 

Bale  Mrs.  W.  R,  Diary  of 128 

Bean  Poles   295 

Beans    53,  96 

in  Grand  Prize  Gardening   ...      7 

Lima   106,   146 

Beginner,  Methods  of  a   189 

Begonias    240 

Belding    G.     E.,    Profitable    Gar- 
den   of     lOI 

Bell,  T.  J.,  Methods  of 93 

Berries,   Marketing    119 

Birds,  To  Scare  Away 292 

Blackberries,    Care   of    245 

Boarders,  Vegetables  for 263 

Bookkeeping,  Garden    278 

Bordeaux     Mixture     for     Potato 

Bugs     174 

Boxes  for  Plants 292 

Brickyard    Gardening     193 

Brussels  Sprouts    260 

Brickey  W.   T.,   Profits  of    158 

Burnham  L.  E.,  Garden  of 62 

Byington     C.     P.,     Expense    Ac- 
count of 185 

Cabbage  in  Grand  Prize  Garden- 
ing         9 

Worms,    Remedy    for    268 

Cabbages    40,    175 

L.   E.  Dimock's   233 

Second   Growth    233 

Calendar,  A  Garden   ...96,  105,  261 

A    Gardener's    41 

of  Garden   Irrigation    158 

Calkins  Mrs.  H.  R.,  Account  of.  138 

Cauliflower    259 

Celery,  Banking   and   Bleaching.  227 

Boarding  Up 92 

Branching  with  Leaf  Mold  ...230 

Culture    138,    175,    181,    259 

Bed,   A  Novel    192 

in  Cellar    232 

in  the  Northwest 228 

in   Trenches    226 

Prize     257 

Chickens  in  Garden   177 

City   Man's   Garden    78 

Clover,  Crimson,  in  the  Garden  177 
Coal,  The  Best  Heat   211 


PAGE 

Cold  Frame,  A  Minnesota 210 

Care  of 205,  206 

Preparing    206 

Cole  W.  K.,  Garden  of 56 

Comfort  from  the  Garden 297 

Contestants,  Number  of 2 

Corn  Culture 57,  107,  232 

Early 96 

in  Grand  Prize  Gardening   ...   20 

Cucumber  Culture 131,  225 

Bugs 235 

Diseases 209 

Experiments  with 31 

Extra   Early    225 

Forcing    208 

Watering 33 

Cultivating  Garden 1 04 

Currants     245 

Currant    Worms    269 

Crops,  Best  Second 275 

Cutworms    186 

Protection    from    286 

Dahlias     241 

Denslow  L.  A.   and   E.    S.,  Gar- 
den of 141 

Diary,   A   Woman's  Garden 128 

Dibble    Miss    S.  A.,  Sketch  of..  118 

Digging,    Clean    291 

Dimock  L.  E.,  Methods  of 64 

Dole  Mrs.  J.   E.,   Calendar  of...  123 
Earliness    to    Secure    Vegetables. 258 
Eastman     L.     J.,     Expense      Ac- 
count of 100 

Edge  A.  P.,  Expense  Account  of  90 

Irrigation    Methods    of    180 

Exhibition,   Vegetables   for 256 

Expense  and- Profits  of  Gardens  247 
Expenses    of    Grand    Prize    Gar- 
dening        14 

Experience,   Prize    276 

Failure,   Causes  of    266 

Farm    Garden    Patch    77 

Feeding   the    Soil    112 

Fertilizer,  Application  of   95 

Cost  of 249 

in  Prize  Gardening 14 

on  Sod  Land   112 

Soluble 173 

Use    of    86 

First  Prize  Gardening 83 

Fisher  E.  C,  Diary  of 136 

Five  Acres  Enough   3/ 


3o6 


INDEX 


PAGE 

Flagg  E.   R.,   Fertilizer   Garden 

of   103 

Flowers,  Most  Desirable 275 

Foot  E.  N.,   Principles  of    11 1 

Expense  Account  of 112 

Forcing  House,  A  Profitable  ...211 

A  Small 211 

Frazer  John,  Forcing  House  of..  195 
Fruit    and    Vegetables     of     John 

Tye 74 

Fruit  Trees  in  Garden   244 

Garden,  Advantages  of  a 91 

A    Busy    Farmer's     60 

A  Connecticut  Valley   52 

A   Good    Family    115 

A   Half- Acre    142 

A  Home   Farm    75 

A,  in  San  Gabriel  Valley  ....159 

A  Large    47 

A   Late    113 

A  Little  Suburban   100 

A  Luxuriant  Home   73 

A  Luxurious    48 

A   Natural    76 

A  Productive  Southern 140 

A  Quarter-Acre   100,   114 

A  Small  Farm 71 

A  Suburban    93 

A  Successful   136 

A  Twenty-Acre Z7 

Comparison    of    247 

Conveniences    285 

Cost  and  Value  of  a 246 

Crops,   Choosing    264 

Land   Taxes   on    248 

Mr.    Hall's    Fertilizer    114 

of   a    Hustler    69 

of  Mrs.   G.   H.   McCluer    74 

on  Chemicals,  A no 

One-Third   Acre    dz 

Patch,    A    City    loi 

Produce,  Value  of   251 

Size  of    265 

Small    Market    250,    252 

The   Family    299 

Vegetables,   List  of    80 

Work,  Methods  of   41 

Gardener,  A  Boy   150 

A    Zealous    143 

Gardening,   Benefits  of    121 

for  Elderly  Women    117 

General  and  Special 251 

Grand    Prize    „      5 

Instructions  for 252,  255 

in   Washington    194 

Practical    260 

Giauque  A.  T.,  Methods  of  ....   69 

Ginseng,   Starting 237 

Grapes  ^ 35 

Bagging     91 

Gray  W.  P.,  Small  Garden  of  . .  61 

Guild  Amelia,  Account  of   134 

Hall   Mrs.    L.    M.   A.,   Profitable 

Garden    of    131 

Hand  Garden  Roller  289 


PAGB 

Hauck  J.  B.,  Account  o£ 81 

House  Lot  of   79 

Herbs,  Garden 237 

High  Feeding  for  Plants   191 

High    Grade    Gardening    63 

Higley  B.  S.,  Sketch  of 83,  303 

Hill    C.    L.,   Account   of   Garden 

of    46 

Hired    Help    86 

Hitchcock,  A.   B.,  Profits  of   ...   75 

Hoe,    A    Novel    288 

Holton  Edith,  Methods  of 71 

Hotbeds    80,    109,    197 

Making  up    198 

Management  of 200,  201 

Substitute    for     31,    90 

Horticulturist,  A   Born    192 

Hunn's  Forcing  House 210 

Implements,   Best   Six    269 

Wheel,    Use   of    283 

Indians,   Selling  Produce  to   ....190 
Insecticides,   Use  of   ...95,105,   129 

Insects,    Fighting    267 

Remedies  for    80 

Interest    Accounts    248 

Irrigation   and   Fertilizers   .165,   173 

by    Windmill    176 

Details    of    161 

from   a  Well    165 

Garden    80,    126,    152 

Hose  for 180 

in   Mining  Districts    167 

in  Mountain  Sections 162 

on  Three  Acres 167 

Plant,  A  Cheap   1 78 

Preparation   for    157,    172 

Process   of    157 

System  of 155 

Kinney  F.   L.,   Forcing  Methods 

of    199 

Kirk  Mrs.  R.,  Income  of 134 

Knife,   Gardening  with  a 193 

Kohl-Rabi     , 106 

Labor,  Cost  of 249 

in  Grand  Prize  Gardening.  .5,   16 

Value    of    36 

Lettuce,     Growing     236 

Spring,    Forcing    208 

Lord   C.   E.,   Success  of    76 

Ludwig,  Mrs.  L.  A.,  Story  of...  127 

Lyman  J.  G.,  Profits  of   114 

Manures,    Cost    of    249 

Spread  on  Snow   280 

Market    Garden     289 

Small    Garden    262 

Melon  Crop,  A  Successful 223 

Garden,    A    185 

Vines,     Pinching     295 

Melons     144 

Good     223 

Mistakes,   Garden    295 

Model    Account,    A    132 

Moles  and  Irrigation   172 

Money   from  a   Minnesota   Gar- 
den   45 


INDEX 


3PZ 


PAGB 

Morse  J.  E.,  Sketch  of lo 

Muskmelons    186 

Novel  Features   183 

Onions    38,  65 

Harvesting    218 

Maggot,  Remedy  for 269 

The  Culture  of   214 

Two  Methods  with 216 

Weeding     217 

Paris  Green,   Use  of   268 

Parker  S.  L.,  Profit  of 112 

Parsnips     235 

Pasture  Land,  Reclaiming 188 

Peas   54,  I07,  258 

in  Dry  Weather   231 

Sweet     239 

Peppers     ;..235 

Perseverance    Under   Difficulties  140 
Pillow  W.  H.,  Winnings  of   ...108 

Pit    for   Forcing    195 

Storing  Vegetables   95 

Plants  in   Boxes    221 

Starting    129,    197,    293 

Planting,   Wide   Rows    281 

Pleasures  of  Gardening .-299 

Poison,    Receptacle    for    95 

Porter  R.  L.,  [Methods  of 101 

Potash,    Points    on     293 

Potato  Bugs,  Poison  for 214 

Potatoes,  Culture  of  34,  39,  57,  107 

as  a  Late  Crop    213 

Early    Planting   of    214 

Field.     The     214 

for    Seed     214 

in  Grand  Prize  Gardening  ...    14 

in  New  Jersey 212 

Prize     256 

Weeding      213 

Practical   Success,  A    56 

Prize    Fertilizer    Gardens    103 

Prize  Winners,  Sketches  of 301 

Products,    Surplus    189 

Profits,   How   to   Secure    253 

Profits  of  Small  Market  Gardens  250 

Pumpkins,   Growing  Large   167 

Queries  of  Grand  Prize  Garden- 
ing        19 

Radishes    1 29 

and    Melons    224 

Raspberries     40 

Care  of    245 

Reclaiming  a   Waste    183 

Rembaugh    B.    S.,    Expense    Ac- 
count  of    27 

Sketch   of    25 

Remedies,   Special   294 

Reports  of  States    3 

Reynolds  J.  B.,  Irrigation  Meth- 
ods of    170 

Rhubarb  in  Grand  Prize  Garden- 
ing         9 


PAGB 

Roberts  Oscar,  Methods  of  ....145 

Rules    I 

Salisfy     260 

Seeds,   Saving    191 

Starting 84,  120,  207 

Shade  for  Plants 182 

Sherman  G.  M.,  Experiments  of  191 
Sketches  of  Prize  Winners   ....301 

Soil  Culture 86 

Testing  the 186 

Working    the     273 

Solid  Comfort    297 

Southern   Vegetables    273 

Space,     Saving     1 00 

Spinach,    Winter    234 

Squashes,  Culture  of..  102,  121,  225 
in  Grand  Prize  Gardening....      9 

Strawberries   34,  39,  54 

Irrigation   of    174 

Prize    75 

Struggle  That  Wins,  The 295  . 

Summary,  A  Garden    279 

Third  Crops   182 

Tomatoes  7,  28,  57,  88,  134,  218,  255 

Ashes   for    293 

Culture,  Southern 220 

Diseases  of 209 

Forcing     208 

Frame,  A  Cheap   222 

Good    221 

Plants    in    Grand    Prize    Gar- 
dening        17 

Profits   of    219 

Transplanting    86,    221 

Tools,    Care  of    89 

in   Grand   Prize  Gardening    ..    14 

List    of     269 

Sharp 88 

Townsend   G.  J.,   Forcing  Meth- 
ods of    204 

Trellis  for  Tomatoes   292 

Vegetables,   Early   258 

for  Exhibit 256 

for  New  England 275 

Neglected    259 

New    274 

Varieties,    Promising    274 

Waterlily,    Culture  of    242 

Weeder,    A    Hand    291 

A    Long-Handle 289 

A   Novel    288 

W^eeds,  Worst    269 

Wet   Land,   Reclaiming    188 

^\'idmer  O.  R.,  Methods  of 60 

Wineberries    182 

Woodruff   Prize  Garden    55 

Work,    Best    Time   to    291 

W^right  L.  C.  and  F.  P.,  Sketch 

of    301 

Wright  L  C,   Account  of 27 

Yield  of  Vegetables 49 


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